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CONTENTS 


BROWNIE AND THE CooK...............Dinah M. Mulock 


THE ELF AND THE DORMOUSE............. Oliver Herford 
THE Dog aND THE DONKEY........ From Reynard the Fox 
‘LHe Prick OF THE COLT........... From Reynard the Fox 


Wuy THE Bear’s Tatu 1s SHort.. . From Reynard the Fox 


MERU OXSIN "THE WEL. otic From Reynard the Fox | 


BroTHer Fox’s Tar Basy.... ...French Fairy Tale 
Bata DAR PDA BY 67 255.2 sean (at) eta Ue 
ame VLOUSHAND THE LROGs ... 3.26... eee ee 
BES RA OSON Cat Adis, chy es) cot EN Daa’. aon is eee James Hogg 
BOM ELISPOT (LGA TI) ss55) ccf. c/a 9 asd oS ple nage gue ae oe eee 
TDAVID & JOURNEY). . 0055004) 03.5. ee ee 
Tur LarkKs IN THE WHEAT (A STORY TO Puay).. 


MES ROW AT LARUGE ois oc'y-. oes ie ee ia ote Taied Parca 
PGSM ARK S°OPURS... 60:65. bg SUS. oe ae Jean Ingelow 
BA Pe PURS SY 9 /of ME wr des su, ca Plas eal anak ie te, 
Pre rrr GROWN (WARK W/o) Sn aS, Jes ee een 
SUSET SOM TEST. 5 cr eee anil ak aa Wn fees Sg OR aan rs 


Tor RAM AND THE Pig WHO WENT TO 
LIVE IN THE Woops...........Peter C. Asbjornsen 


AeTPANKSGIVING | FABIM 2 2 tices oe sch ces Oliver Herford 
CHILD ROWLAND AND THE DARK 

TOWER. . Sr it .. English Fairy Tale 

RowLaND ene TO ita iors ku Sid CUE Bes ee a 

SITS ISIN OTTER Ueteear ete i De Maal eat 24408 cole Rate 

AV ere elt ATRIBR.  f\stina seis caer ees ee William Allingham 


PAGE 


BLUNDER AND THE WISHING GATE......... Louise Chollet 
Pan. Woops GOBLINS HOUSE o25.. a i ee eee 
tin SOUTH. WIND Lowe. oo Ue ee eee oe eNeetT he ae 

WIIRHING: sie ert ee to bes ee William Allingham 

CUIND BREILLAAR se loh fein dh epee & Ranta roe English Fairy Tale 
TEA MeArRY? CODMOTHER see ne armen ete 2 eee 
SETHE MESA Lae cre a PR 3 ee ee nce VA's Oe Se 


THE SUNBEAM........ NN Ou (GU a ea Te 9 Oc) 
A ONT LI EL RAVER Oc ee ae H. Bentham-Edwards 


SDH EO SANDUM Me Cite mr emt eere li. ska 
(DAR eOASTLE Svea aneeenie ante... . eee 
Tue MovunNTAIN AND THE SQUIRREL. Ralph Waldo Emerson 


How THe BrRaMBLE BusH BEcAME KING............... 
RvRUHAt MIN IGE Des .aOn he eles ko ey Mary F. Butts 
HREM DOUASTING DAMBOO sarc ies ds bile. e. Japanese Myth 

Ame LITTLR CUREW. ene ol rrr 
Deer VIBASURE: OF SRICHS (se ly 6s. ce cc Hindu Tale 
eae ERCHANTIOOR DERE. 1.0. eyed cea cb eee Hindu Tale 
MGR A DWE 1 9M oe Blane) tere ey oO Ralph Waldo Emerson 
BESET ROCA LIND) hyde Ac tae te ee sa tees 8 Robert Louis Stevenson 
ae YRS IN THE RRACOCK SS: LAT...) 32.308 Greek Myth 
How a THISTLE SAVED SCOTLAND......... Scottish Legend 
fiat AHOUNTAIN OF nY OUTHW Poy leis xcs Washington Irving 
WuereE Go THE Boats?...........Robert Louts Stevenson 
PEA LIN GSOLDIBR. i), ents os Hans Christian Andersen 

LHe GOBLIN’. 2. oo eee ee 

BER DOAT. oon eed ok ee eee 
eee) UMBLIESS. bo on fis bw a Edward Lear 
PRENTICE i. eect, 0) Bema, ie. ee C. Collodi 

Master Caerrys. VISITOR. (7.2 Ge ee 


PERSO IEICT CULIN GUA WAS Sch halen ies THES olan od ace! Slag kc ove 179 
Beerlict hie AT RING AC OBTOR ET ys fc coe cis We diols Cy Ooo ha ware 182 
PoELYOCHT ES MLLUN GE Re whhed Jee ated ee tis eek was 186 
REN COCHIOMLOSR Se LIS LOM: si supe COR oe, 189 
Pre OMTTOMIR TURNS LLOME aus sr we, Pe ee 191 
PINCH MeN EWE HOT eS e's eee ie Oe eel 195 
PINOCCHIO D DETSAMUE FOR. SCHOOLS. -. eo. ess ole 200 
PINOCCHIO-CrOHS’ TO “THE SHOW 4.0..s0008 on ele a ohk s ads 203 
PIRE-EATER PARDONS PINOCCHIO. .:..........0.0.... 207 
VERY eee EG ANDO. iar Varsity. 5 y's wk lrdae ies 208 
Set rR Mane OD VIN 0) ck eee ik. ot Bae eee 213 
MBs dey eI ATES, «ole te) ARSE Sell tens ee a min 
PINOCOHIONH UNG ONVTHE DIG) OAK eds. ok eke 222 
PINOCCHIO IS SAVED BY THE Farry witH BLUE Harr 225 
Pinoccsaio Keruses THE MEpICINE... fof) 0.80... 228 
THe WONDERFUL ADVENTURES OF Nits. ...Selma Lagerlof 233 
OTESCE © Loa ahve, oo HEURES INI 2 LI gee ta OUR ae Seer 235 
IBY rey RPA EGU Pts de), oats, ace, wstaganatech ola sopteintucass 240 
PISrRIOmeN VIET mE CEnYOS EN ns a keg teh Mee ete ew aka 245 


The thanks of the Authors are due the following for the use of copy- 
right material: To Oliver Herford, for two poems; and to Doubleday, Page 
and Company for a selection from Selma Lagerlof. 

The selections from Emerson and Larcom are used by permission of, 
and by special arrangement with, Houghton Mifflin Company, the authorized 
publishers of their works. 


BROWNIE AND THE COOK 


There was once a little brownie, who lived in a 
coal cellar. Now a coal cellar is a curious place 
to live in; but then a brownie is a curious 
creature. He is not one of the fairies who flit 
about on butterfly wings. Of what use would 
they be in a coal cellar? 

He is a sober, stay-at-home little elf. He is 
not much to look at, even if you do see him, 
which is not likely. He is only a little old man, 
about a foot high, all dressed in brown, with 
brown face and hands and a brown peaked cap. 
He is the color of a brown mouse and, like a 
mouse, he hides in corners of the kitchen and 
comes out after dark when nobody is about. 

I said you were not likely to see him. I 
never did, and never knew anybody who did. 
Still I have heard many funny stories about 
brownies, and so I may as well tell you the 
adventures of a brownie who followed a family 
about from house to house for many years. 

A good many persons had heard him, or 
thought they had. There were strange noises 

3 


about the house. ‘These noises might have been 
made by a mouse or a rat—or a brownie. How- 
ever, nobody had ever seen him except the chil- 
dren. The three little boys and the three little 
girls said that he often came to play with them 
when they were alone. He was the nicest play- 
fellow in the world, although he was hundreds of 
years old. He was full of fun and mischief, and 
up to all kinds of tricks, but he never did anybody 
any harm. 

Brownie was supposed to live in the darkest 
corner of the cellar. Nobody knew why he had 
chosen it, or how he lived there, or what he lived 
upon. However, ever since the family could re- 
member, a bowl of milk had always been put 
behind the cellar door for the brownie’s supper. 
Perhaps he drank it—perhaps he didn’t. Any- 
how, the bowl was always found empty next 
morning. 


3 THE NEW COOK 
The old cook, who had lived all her life in the 
family, had never once forgotten to give Brownie 


his supper. But at last she died, and in her 
4 


place came a young cook, who was very apt to 
forget everything. She was also careless and 
lazy, and disliked the trouble of putting a bowl 
of milk in the same place every night. 

She didn’t believe in brownies, she said, for 
she had never seen one. So she laughed at the 
other servants, who looked very sober and who 
always put a bowl of milk in its place, if they 
could do it without her seeing them. 

One night when Brownie woke up at his usual 
hour for rising and looked around in search of 
his supper, he found nothing. At first he could 
not believe his eyes, and went looking and smell- 
ing about for his bowl of milk. He knew that 
it had not always been placed in the same corner 
lately, but this night he could not find it any- 
where. | 

“This will never do,”’ said he. 

Being very hungry, he began to run about 
the coal cellar in search of something to eat. 
His eyes were like pussy’s, but they could see 
nothing to eat because there was nothing to be 
seen. There was not even a potato paring, or 


a dry crust, or a bone such as Tiny, the dog, some- 
5 


times brought into the coal cellar and left on the 
floor. There was nothing but a heap of coals 
and coal dust; and even a brownie cannot eat 
that, you know. 

“T can’t stand this,” said the brownie, tight- 
ening his belt to make his poor little stomach feel 
less empty. 

He had been asleep all day, as was his habit 
when there was nothing to do. Now he seemed 
ready to eat his own head, or his boots, or any- 
thing. 

‘“What’s to be done?” said he. ‘Since no- 
body brings my supper, I must go and get it.” 

He spoke quickly, for he always thought 
quickly, and made up his mind ina minute. To 
be sure it was a very little mind, like his little 
body. But he did the best he could with it, and 
was not a bad kind of old fellow, after all. 

He had never done any harm in the home 
and had often done good. He frightened away 
all the rats, the mice, and the beetles, but not 
the crickets. He liked the crickets just as the 
old cook had. She said they were happy beings 
and always brought luck to the house. But the 

6 


Sl 


young cook could not bear them. She used to 
pour boiling water down their holes, and set 
basins of water for them to tumble into, so that 
they might be drowned. 

So there was not even a cricket singing in the 
house when Brownie put his head out of his 
coal cellar door. He was surprised to find the 
door open. The old cook used to lock it every 
night; but the young cook had left that key, 
and the kitchen key, and the pantry key all 
hanging in the lock. Any thief might have come 
in and have gone all over the house without being 
found out. 

‘Hurrah, here’s luck!”’ cried Brownie, tossing 
his cap up into the air, and bounding right into 
the kitchen. It was quite empty, but there was 
a good fire burning itself out—just for fun. 
The remains of a fine supper were spread on the 
table. There was still enough left for half a 
dozen people. 

Would you like to know what there was? 
There was cream, and part of a large dish of 
pudding. ‘There was lots of bread and butter 


and cheese, and half of an apple pie. There 
7 


was a great jug of cider and another of milk, .~ 


and several half-full glasses, and no end of dirty 
plates, knives, and forks. All were scattered 
about the table in the most untidy fashion. 
The servants had risen from their supper with- 
out putting anything away. 

Brownie screwed up his little old face and gave 
a long whistle. You might not believe it, seeing 
he lived in a coal cellar, but really he liked tidi- 
ness, and always played his pranks on untidy 
people. 


BROWNIE’S SUPPER 


“Whew!” said he. ‘‘What a fine supper I 
shall have!”’ 

He jumped on a chair and from there to the 
table. He did it so quietly that the huge black 
cat, which sat toasting her four white paws in 
front of the fire, just opened one eye and went to 
sleep again. She was called Muff because she 
was so fat and her fur was so long and soft. 

She had tried to get her nose into the milk 
jug, but the jug was too small; and the pudding 


dish was too deep for her to reach except with 
8 


rea 


Baw 


: he 
nal 


wet he 


one paw. She didn’t care much for bread and 
cheese and apple pie, and besides she had had 
her supper.’ So after just walking around the 
table, she had jumped down from it and gone 
to sleep on the hearth. 

But Brownie had no notion of going to sleep. 
He wanted his supper; and what a supper he 
did eat! He tried first one thing and then an- 
other, and then tried everything all over again. 
And what a lot he did drink! First he took 
milk, and then cider, and then mixed the two 
together in a way that was enough to make even 
a brownie sick. As it was, he had to loosen 


his belt several times, and at last he took it off 


altogether. But he must have had a great ca- 
pacity for eating and drinking, since, after he 
had nearly cleared the table, he was just as 
lively as ever, and began to jump on the table 
as if he had had no supper at all. 

On the table was a clean white tablecloth. 
You see it was only Monday and the cloth had 
not had time to get soiled, untidy as the cook 


was. And you know Brownie lived in a coal 


cellar, and his feet were black with running 
9 


about in coal dust. So wherever he'stepped, he 
left tracks behind, until at last the whole table- 
cloth was covered with them. 

He tried to make the cloth as dirty as possible. 
Then he laughed loudly, leaped to the hearth, 
and began to tease the cat. He squeaked like a 
mouse, or chirped like a cricket, or buzzed like a 
fly. Poor pussy hid herself in the corner, and 
left him all to himself on the hearth, where he 
lay till morning. 

At last, he heard a slight noise and thought 
the servants were getting up. So he jumped on 
the table again and ate up the few remaining 
crumbs for his breakfast. Then he ran to the 


coal cellar. He hid himself under the coal, and - 


fell asleep for the day. 

When the cook came down stairs to clear off 
the supper, there was nothing left to clear. Every 
bit of food was gone. The cheese looked as if a 
dozen mice had been nibbling it. There was 
no milk or cider left; but mice don’t care for milk 
and cider. The apple pie was gone, too; and 
the dish was licked as clean as if the dog had been 


at it. 
10 


~_ 


“Oh, my white tablecloth—oh, my clean white 
tablecloth! What could have done it?’ cried 
the cook. 

It was covered with little black tracks just 
the size of a baby’s foot. But babies don’t 
wear shoes with nails in them, and they don’t 
run about and climb on tables after all the 
family have gone to bed. 

The cook was a little frightened at first; but 
her fear changed to anger when she saw the 
large black cat stretched on the hearth. Poor 
Muff had crept there for a little nap after Brownie 
had gone away. 

“You nasty cat!’’ said she, as she rushed 
toward her. “It is you that ate up the supper. 
It is you that walked on my clean tablecloth 
with your dirty paws.”’ 

They were white paws and as clean as possible; 
but the cook never thought of that, any more 
than she did of the fact that cats don’t usually 
drink cider or eat apple pie. 

“T’ll teach you to come stealing food in this 
way,” said the cook. ‘‘Take that—and that— 


and that!’’ 
ll 


The cook took the broom and beat poor pussy 
tillsheran away. She couldn’t speak, you know, 
and tell the cook that it was Brownie who had 
done it all. 


THE NEXT NIGHT 


Next night, the cook thought she would make 
everything safe. So, instead of letting the cat 
sleep by the fire, she shut her up in the chilly 
coal cellar. She locked the door, put the key 
in her pocket, and went off to bed. She left 
the supper on the table as before. 

When Brownie woke up and looked out of 
his hole, again there was no supper for him, 
and the cellar door was shut. He looked about, 
and tried to find some place under the door to 
creep through; but there was none. He felt 
so hungry that he could almost have eaten the 
cat, which kept walking back and forth in the 
coal cellar. But she was alive, and he couldn’t 
very well eat her alive. Besides, she was old, 
and he had an idea she might be tough. So he 
merely said, politely, ‘‘How do you do, Mrs. 


Pussy?’’ She did not answer him. 
12 


Nevertheless, something must be done; and 
brownies can do things that nobody else can do. 
At first, he thought he would change himself 
into a mouse, and gnaw a hole through the 
door. Then he suddenly remembered the cat.. 
He had decided not to eat her, but he was quite 
certain that she would wish to eat him. So he 
thought it best to- wait till she was fast asleep. 
But it was a long time before she decided: to go 
to bed.’ At last, however, quite tired with walk- 
ing about, Pussy turned around on her tail six 
times, curled down in a corner, and fell fast 
asleep. 

Quickly Brownie changed himself into a very 
tiny mouse. He also took care not to make the 
least noise. Then he gnawed a hole in the door, 
and slipped through. When he was on the 
other side of the door, he turned himself into a 
brownie again. 

The kitchen fire was not quite out. There 
was still enough light to show that the supper 
was even better than the one he had found the 
night before. In fact, there was enough food 


left for three brownies; but this one ate it all. 
13 


In trying to cut a piece of beef he let the knife 
and the fork fall. They made such a great noise 
that the dog began to bark. It seemed as if 
she would arouse everybody in the house. But 
Brownie got her the puppy, which was in a 
basket in the corner of the room, and she be- 
came quiet again. 

When Brownie had finished his supper, he 
again made tracks all over the white tablecloth. 
After that, he teased the puppy for an hour or 
two until the clock struck five. Then he thought 
it wise to turn into a mouse again and creep 
back into his cellar. 

He was only just in time, though. For at 
the very minute when he slipped through the 
hole, the cat opened one eye and was about to 
pounce upon him. Before she could touch him, 
however, he changed himself back into a brownie 
right before her eyes. Muff was so scared that 
she ran away. Her tail grew into twice its usual 
size, and her eyes looked like balls of fire. But 
Brownie only said, ‘‘Ha, ha, ha!’’ and walked 
slowly into his hole. 


When the cook came down stairs in the morn- 
14 


ing, She saw that again the supper was all eaten. 
The tablecloth, too, was blacker than ever with 
the strange tracks. She was greatly puzzled. 
Who could have done it all? It was not the cat, 
which came mewing out of the coal cellar the 
minute the door was unlocked. Perhaps it was 
a rat. But then, would a rat have come so 
near the dog? 

It must have been the dog, or her puppy, 
which just then came rolling out of its basket. 
“You little wretch,’’ said the cook. ‘‘You and 
your mother did this. Ill teach you to keep 
off the table. ’”’ 

She quite forgot that Tiny had been safely 
tied up all night, and that her poor little puppy 
was so fat and helpless he could hardly stand 
on his legs. He surely could not jump on 
chairs and tables. But she gave them both 
such a beating that they ran howling out of the 
‘kitchen. The kind little kitchen maid soon 
found them in the yard and took them up in her 
arms. | 

“You ought to beat Brownie, if you could 


catch him,”’ said the maid to the cook. “He. 
15 


will do it again and again, you'll see; for he 
can’t bear an untidy kitchen. You’d better do 
as the poor old cook did, and wash the supper 
dishes and put the odds and ends safe in the 
cupboard. And if I were you,” she added, ‘‘I 
would put a bowl of milk behind the coal cellar 
door.” 

‘““Nonsense!’’ answered the young cook, as she 
went away. But afterward she thought better 
of it, and did as the maid had said. 

Next morning the milk was gone. Perhaps 
Brownie drank it. Anyhow, nobody could say 
that he didn’t. 

As for the supper, the cook put it on the 
shelves of the pantry and nobody touched it. 
As for the tablecloth, she folded it up and put 
it in the drawer of the sideboard. In the morn- 
ing, it was as clean as ever, with not a single 
black footmark upon it. No mischief had been 
done, and the cat and the dog were not blamed. 

And Brownie played no more tricks upon 


anybody—till the next time. 
—Dinah M. Mulock. 


- ~<) y Nahin |) 
a “Shy Pv 
hy a 2 al 


aA: 
'} - 
/ q 


THE ELF AND THE DORMOUSE 


Under a toadstool 
Crept a wee Elf, 
Out of the rain 
To shelter himself. 


Under the toadstool, 
Sound asleep, 
Sat a big dormouse 


| All in a heap. 
: 17 


Trembled the wee EIf, 
Frightened, and yet 

Fearing to fly away, © 
Lest he get wet. 


To the next shelter— 
Maybe a mile! 

Sudden the wee Elf 
Smiled a wee smile; 


Tugged till the toadstool 
Toppled in two. 

Holding it over him, 
Gayly he flew. 


Soon he was safe home, 
Dry as could be. 

Soon woke the dormouse— 
“Good gracious me! 


‘“Where is my toadstool?’’ 
Loud he lamented. 

And this is how umbrellas 
First were invented. 


—Oliver Herford. 
18 


THE DOG AND THE DONKEY 


A certain man had a dog and a donkey. 
was very fond of the dog. He petted him 


He 


gave 


) 


19 


him fine food, and allowed him to sit on his lap. 

The donkey worked all day for the man, and 
when his work was over, he was shut up in his 
stall with only straw to eat. 

One day the donkey said to himself, ‘‘My 
master likes the dog. I wonder why he doesn’t 
like me? The dog never does any work, but I 
work all day long. The dog has fine food to 
eat and I have only straw. My master always 
pets the dog, but he never says a kind word to 
me!”’ 

The donkey felt very sad. At last he said, 
“T know why my master likes the dog. It is 
because the dog sits on his lap. I will sit on 
his lap and then he will like me.”’ 

Soon the donkey’s master came into the garden 
and sat down on a bench. Then the donkey 
ran to him and sat on his lap. 

“Help! help!’’ called the man. ‘‘The donkey 
is killing me! Take him away! I will not have 
him: here!”’ | 

So the servants came and led the donkey away 
and beat him for what he had done. 


—From Reynard, the Fox. . 
20 


THE PRICE OF THE COLT 


The wolf and the fox were walking through a 
field when they saw a mother horse and her colt. 
The wolf was hungry, as usual, and begged the 
fox to go to the horse and ask her if she would sell 
her colt. So the fox went to ask her. 

The horse told him that she would sell the 
colt for money. 

‘“What 1s the price?’’ asked the fox. 

“You will find the price written on my hind 
foot,’’ replied the horse. 

The fox knew what she meant; and being very 
‘sly, he said, ‘‘I do not wish to buy the colt; but 
the wolf sent me to ask the price of it.” 

‘Let him come,’’ said the horse, ‘‘and I am 
sure he will be satisfied.’’ 

Then the fox went to the wolf and told him 
what the horse had said. 

“T could not buy the colt,’ said the fox, ‘‘be- 
cause I could not read the price, which was 
written on the mother’s hind foot.’ 

The wolf was a great boaster. ‘‘Oh, I can 


read,” he said. ‘‘I can read all kinds of writ- 
21 


Yh 


os 


% 


ing. I will go and see what the price is.” 

The wolf set out in fine spirits. When he 
came to the mother horse, he asked the price 
of the colt. The horse held up one hind foot 
so that he might read the writing that was on it. 

As the wolf could not see very well, he came 
nearer. Then the mother horse struck him a 
terrible blow with her foot. The wolf rolled 
over and over and lay for a long time as if he 
were dead. At last he began to move and to 
howl like a dog. 

So the fox came near to him and said, ‘‘ Are 
you ill? Did you eat too much of the colt? 
Didn’t you save a part of it for me? What was 
written on the mother’s foot?”’ 

“Do not be so cruel, Brother Fox,’’ said the 
wolf. ‘‘The mother horse has an iron shoe. 
I thought the nails were letters, and when I 
tried to read them, she hit me with her foot. 
I am sure my poor head is broken.”’ 

‘‘T now see that the old proverb is true,’’ said 
the fox. ‘‘Those who read the best are not 


always the wisest men.” 
—From Reynard, the Fox. 
23 


as Ay Man ae 8 
LS V5 ‘fm 
if Le yp Ve ZaA\ i ay HA 
De 


we 
AG NS ; 
se BN 45 


My 


fe oe . 
tt x / “all As 
ii fh 


24 


WHY THE BEAR’S TAIL IS SHORT 


In the winter the fox told Mother Bear that 
he would teach her to fish. As she was willing 
to learn, he led her to a hole in the ice, and told 
her to put her tail down into the water. 

He told her, too, to keep it there for a long 
time. ‘Then when she pulled her tail out of the 
water, she would find it covered with fish. 

The bear was silly enough to believe all that 
the fox said; so she sat a long time, with her 
tail in the water, waiting for the fish. When 
at last she tried to pull her tail out of the water, 
she found to her dismay that it was frozen fast 
in the ice. 3 

She called to Reynard to pull her out; but 
he laughed at her and ran away. Then she 
called to Father Bear, who came to help her. 

But the men of the village also heard Mother 
Bear calling, and they came with clubs to kill 
her. Father Bear pulled and pulled, until at 
last he set her free. But Mother Bear left a 


part of her tail in the ice. | 
—From Reynard, the Fox. 


25 


a>} 


: SESS aaa RTs Oa ROMs Ma eae 
LOCO O TNC 


vA 
sl 

oo 
 & 


THE FOX IN THE WELL 


There were two buckets in a well. They were 


held by a rope that passed over a wheel at the 
26 


top of the well. When one bucket went up the 
other went down. 

One day, the fox got into one of the buckets 
and fell to the bottom of the well. When he 
tried to get out, he splashed in the water and 
made a great noise. The wolf heard him and 
ran to see what was the matter. 

“What are you doing down there, Brother 
Fox?’’ he asked. 

“T am catching fish,” said the fox. ‘‘Come 
down and help me.”’ 7 

“How can I come down?”’ asked the wolf. 

“Jump into the bucket up there,” said the 
fox, ‘‘and you will be here in a minute.”’ 

The wolf was foolish enough to obey the fox. 
He got into the bucket; and as he was much 
heavier than the fox, he at once fell to the bot- 
tom of the well, while the fox went up to the top. 
Then the fox jumped out of the bucket and ran 
away. | 

“Do not leave me down here,”’ called the wolf. 

But the fox only said, ‘‘That is the way of the 


world. When one goes up another goes down.” 
—Frem Reynard, the Fox. 
27 


BROTHER FOX’S TAR BABY 


One hot summer day, Brother Fox was going 
down to the river to fish when he met Brother 
Rabbit. 

‘Good morning, Brother Rabbit,’ said he. 
“Get your fish-pole and go fishing with me.”’ 

‘What! go fishing this warm day?” replied 
Brother*Rabbit. ‘Certainly not. I had rather 
sit here in the shade than fish in the hot sun.” 

“Let us get some of the branches of these 
trees and make a little house on the bank of the 
river,’ said Brother Fox. ‘‘Then we can sit 
in the shade and fish.” 

“Tt is too hot to build a house,”’ replied Brother 
Rabbit. ‘‘Besides, I never eat fish.” 

“Very well, Brother Rabbit,” said Brother 
Fox. ‘Then I shall build the house alone, and 
I shall be the only one who can fish in it.”” And 
Brother Fox went on his way to the river. 

Brother Rabbit slept in the cool shade of the 
old oak all the afternoon while Brother Fox built 
his house to fish in. 

The next day, Brother Rabbit did not see 

28 


anything of Brother Fox, so he took his fish- 
pole and went to fish in Brother Fox’s new house. 
He found it such a nice cool place that he de- 
cided to fish there every day. 

Soon after Brother Rabbit had gone away, 
Brother Fox came to fish in his house, and he 
saw tracks on the floor. 

“What is this?” he said to himself. ‘Who 
has been fishing in my house?”’ 

When Brother Fox had looked very carefully 
at the tracks, he shouted angrily, ‘‘ Well, I declare! 
Rabbit tracks! I will teach Brother Rabbit not 
to come fishing around my house! Just wait 
until I catch him!’’ 

Brother Fox was so angry that he did not 
fish at all that day. He went back home again 
and tried to think of some way to catch Brother 
Rabbit. He thought and thought all the after- 
noon, but he could not think of a way to catch 
Brother Rabbit. 


THE TAR BABY 


Next morning, Brother Fox got up very early, 


for he had at last thought of a way to catch 
29 


Brother Rabbit. He took an old rag doll and 
covered it with tar from head to foot. Then 
he set out for his fishing-house. 

Brother Fox left the tar baby in the path, 
while he went on and hid in the house. Soon 
Brother Rabbit came along. 

“Brother Fox isn’t around,’ said he, ‘so 
I will go into his house and fish in the shade.’’ 

When Brother Rabbit came down the path, 
he saw the tar baby and called out, ‘‘Who are 
you?”’ 

The tar baby did not answer, and Brother 
Rabbit grew very angry. 

‘Why don’t you answer?’’ heshouted. ‘‘Have 
you no tongue in your old black head? Speak 
at once or I will hit you!”’ 

Of course, the tar baby said nothing; so Brother 
Rabbit hit him with his right hand. But when 
he tried to draw his hand away again, he found 
that it was stuck fast to the tar baby. 

“Tet go! Let go!” he cried oe “Tf you 
don’t let go, I will hit you again.” 

Bing! Brother Rabbit hit the tar baby with 


his left hand, and that also stuck fast. 
30 


¢¢ 


‘“‘Let me go! Let me go!”’ shouted Brother Rab- 
bit. ‘If you don’t let me go, I will kick you.” 

He kicked, as he said he would, and his foot 
stuck fast. Then Brother Rabbit raised his other 
foot and said, ‘‘Do you see this foot? If I kick 
you with this foot, you will think Brother Bear 
is knocking your head off.” 

Again Brother Rabbit kicked the Pye baby, 
and then both hands and both feet were stuck 
fast... 

‘Let me go now, will you!”’ said Brother Rab- 
bit. “‘If you don’t, I will butt you with my 
head and send you clear to the bottom of the 
river.”’ 

Bing! Brother Rabbit butted the tar baby, 
and then his head stuck fast. Now he could 
hardly move. 

At last, he knew how helpless he was, and was 
very much frightened. He did not threaten any 
longer, but only begged the tar baby to let 
him go. 

‘Good little black boy,” i said, ‘‘please let 
me go. I was only playing with you. I didn’t 


mean to hurt you.’ 
32 


Just then, Brother Fox ran out of his house 
and saw Brother Rabbit. ‘Ha! ha! Brother 
Rabbit,” he called out. ‘‘I have caught you 
this time. Now you will see what pe to 
people who break into my house.” 

“OQ, Brother Fox,” said Brother Rabbit, 
‘“‘nlease let me go. I am your friend.” 

“You are a thief!’’ said Brother Fox; ‘‘and 
I don’t want a thief for a friend. Just watch 
me build this big fire.” 

‘What are you going to build a fire for, Brother 
Fox?’”’ asked Brother Rabbit; and his voice 
trembled. 

“Oh, I think I shall have roast rabbit for 
dinner,’’ replied Brother Fox. ‘‘ Roast rabbit 
is fine.’’ | | 

So Brother Fox gathered dry leaves and 
branches and piled them up near Brother Rab- 
bit and set them on fire. 

“Oh! I am burning!” screamed Brother Rab- | 
bit, as soon as the fire began to burn. ‘‘Let me 
go, Brother Fox. Let me go!”’ 

Brother Fox did not say anything. He only 


went to get more wood for the fire. As the fire 
3 33 


erew hotter, the tar baby began to melt, and 
soon Brother Rabbit had one of his hands free. 
In a little while his other hand was free also; 
but Brother Fox did not notice it. 

‘‘How is that for a fire?’’ asked Brother Fox, 
coming up with his arms full of wood. 

‘“Fire!”’? said Brother Rabbit. ‘‘Do you call 
that a fire? You will have to make a bigger fire 
than that before you can roast me.” 

“Very well,’ said Brother Fox as he went 
away to get more wood. ‘You shall have all 
the fire you want.” 

Before he returned, however, “he tar baby had 
melted and Brother Rabbit was free. He ran 
away so fast that Brother Fox could not catch 
him. When he was quite out of the reach of 
Brother Fox and felt very safe, he called out: 

‘“‘Be sure to build a big fire, Brother Fox. I 
am so busy I cannot wait until dinner time. 
You will have to find another rabbit to roast 


this time. Good-by.”’ 
—French Fairy Tale. 


34 


THE MOUSE AND THE FROG 


A mouse and a frog were friends. ‘The mouse 
lived in a nest in a field, and the frog lived in a 
pond. 

One day, the frog went to visit the mouse. 
The mouse showed him her nice nest and the 
erain-field where she found her food. 

‘This 1s very good,” said the frog; ‘‘but my 
house is much better. The water is fine.” 

“T do not like the water,’’ said the mouse. 

‘“Come to visit me to-morrow,” said the frog. 
“You will soon learn to like the water.”’ 

“Thank you,” said the mouse. “TI will come 
to-morrow.” 

“Now I must be going,” said the frog. 
‘Good-by.”’ 

“Good-by,”’ said the mouse. 

The next day, the mouse went to visit the frog. 
When she saw the water, she was afraid, for she 
did not know how toswim. But the frog said that 
he would teach her. So he tied a string around 
the mouse’s neck and fastened it to one of his 


own legs. Then he dragged her into the pond. 
35 


36 


“Take me out of the water! Take me out of 
the water!’’ cried the mouse, as she began to 
sink, 

The frog only laughed at her fears; but soon 
the poor little mouse was drowned. | 

Just then a hawk flew by looking for some- 
thing for dinner.. When the frog saw the hawk, 
he was afraid and dove down under the water. 
But the string he had tied to his leg was so 
long that the mouse on the other end of the string 
floated on the surface. 

So the hawk seized the mouse and flew away; 
and the frog was carried along at the end of the 
string. 
me) tet me go! Let me go!’’ heshouted. “It 
is the mouse you want.” 

‘What is that?” said the hawk, as ey turned 
his head. 

When he saw the frog, he tie phsa: “Well, 
IT am in luck!” he said. “Who ever caught a 
mouse and a frog at the same time? I shall have 
a fine dinner to-day.” 

And away he flew to his nest. 


37 


A BOY’S SONG 


Where the pools are bright and deep, 
Where the gray trout lies asleep, 

Up the river and o’er the lea, 
That’s the way for Billy and me. 


Where the blackbird sings the latest, 
Where the hawthorn blooms the sweetest, 
Where the nestlings chirp and flee, 
That’s the way for Billy and me. 


Where the mowers mow the cleanest, 
Where the hay lies thick and greenest; 
There to trace: the homeward bee, 
That’s the way for Billy and me. 


Where the hazel bank is steepest, 2 
Where the shadow lies the deepest, 
Where the clustering nuts fall free, 
That’s the way for Billy and me. 


But this I know, I love to play 
Through the meadow, among the hay; 
Up the water and o’er the lea, 


That’s the way for Billy and me. 


—James Hogg. 
38 


THE SHEPHERD LAD 

In Bethlehem lived Jesse the shepherd with his 
eight sons. His flocks fed on the hillsides, and 
his sons watched them by day and shut them up 
in the fold at night. 

The youngest of Jesse’s sons was David. He 
helped his brothers to care for the sheep, and he 
also learned to play the harp and to sing. In- 
deed, he played and sang so well that he became 
known as ‘‘The Sweet Singer of Israel.”’ 

Once, King Saul, the king of Israel, became 
ull from care and worry. Huis servants, greatly 
troubled, sent for David, and desired him to play 
upon his harp so that the king might forget his 
sorrows and be well again. 

So David took his harp and went with the 
king’s servants. When they came to the king’s 
tent, the servants left David and hurried back 
to their tasks. 

David had never seen the king, who had shut 
himself up in his tent, and had driven away in 
anger all who dared to come near the place. A 
stouter heart than David’s might have shrunk 


from lingering there. Doubtless he felt like run- 
39 


ning away; but instead, he went up to the door- 
way of the tent and began to sing softly and to 
play upon his harp.’ 

He sang of the fields and the birds and the 
flocks on the hillsides. He sang of the brooks 
and of the cool shade of the woods. He sang 
of King Saul himself and of his courage and glory. 
Hour after hour he sang, until at last the king 
spoke; but his voice was so low that David could 
not hear his words. 

So he only replied, ‘‘I am David, thy servant.” 

Then Saul spoke more loudly. ‘“‘I feel better, 
at last,’’ he said. ‘‘I will now go to sleep.” 

Then David took his harp and stole softly 
away to tell the anxious servants that the king 
was asleep. After that, he went back to his 
home; and the king never knew who had sung 
away his trouble and care. 

Day after day and week after week went by 
while David helped his brothers care for the 
sheep. At last, the Philistines made war on 
the people of Israel; and King Saul called upon 
the men of his kingdom to fight for their country. 


Three of David’s brothers joined the army; 
40 : 


but David was left at home with the others to 
tend the sheep. 

As time passed, Jesse grew anxious about his 
sons who were exposed to the dangers of war. 
One day he called David to him. 

‘“My son,” he said, ‘‘I am troubled about 
your brothers. I should like to know that they 
are safe and well. Take some food that they like 
and go to visit them to-morrow.”’ 

‘Yes, father, I will do as you wish,”’ said David. 
And he hurried away to the pasture. 

All that day while he watched the sheep, David 
thought of the wonderful journey he should take 
on the morrow; and that night he could not 
sleep for thinking of it. 


DAVID’S JOURNEY 


Early the next morning, he was up and away 
to the camp of the army. With him went a 
servant, who led a donkey loaded with ears of 
corn and fresh loaves of bread for David’s broth- 
ers, besides a present for the captain. 

When David came near to the camp, he com- 


manded the servant to wait by the roadside 
4] 


as 


while he went to look for his brothers. But 
before he had gone many steps, he saw a most 
wonderful sight. 

Right before him was a little valley, and drawn 
up for battle on opposite sides of the valley were 
the army of the Philistines and the army of 
Israel. While David was looking for his broth- 
ers, a giant named Goliath, who was more than 
nine feet tall, came out from the army of the 
Philistines, and called aloud to the men of Israel. 

‘“You men of Israel are cowards,” he shouted. 
‘“‘T dare you to send a man to fight against me. 
If you send a man who can kill me, then the 
Philistines will be your servants; but if I kill 
your man, you will be the servants of the Philis- 
tines.’’ . 

The soldiers of Israel trembled when they hear 
the words of the giant. One of them spoke to 
David and said that the king had promised to 
give his daughter to be the wife of the man who 
should kill the giant. 

Then David said, ‘‘ Let no man fear, for I will 
now go and kill this giant.” 


So they told Saul what David had said, and 
42 


Saul sent for David. When the lad came before 
him, Saul said, ‘“‘You are not able to fight this 
giant. You are only a youth, and he has been 
a soldier for many years.” 

David replied, ‘‘I am not afraid. Once when 
I watched my father’s sheep, a mountain lion 
came and took one of the lambs; but I ran after 
him and smote him with my staff. He let the 
lamb go and jumped at me; but I smote him 
again with my staff and killed him. At another 
time, a bear came and took one of the sheep, and 
I killed him also. Do you think my God, who 
saved me from the mouth of the lion and from 
the paws of the bear, will not be able to save me 
from the giant?”’ 

Then Saul said to David, ‘‘Go, and the Lord 
be with you.”’ 

Saul put his own armor on David and gave 
him his own sword; but David refused them. 

‘“‘T can not fight with these,” he said, ‘‘for I 
have not been trained to use them.” 

So David took off the armor and gave back 
the king’s sword. Then he went to the brook 


and chose five smooth stones, which he put in 
43 


his shepherd’s bag; “and he took his sling in. 
his hand and ran toward the giant. 3 
When Goliath saw David coming, he was 
astonished and called out, ‘You men of Israel 
are cowards. You send a lad to fight a soldier!”’ 
As David ran to meet the giant, he put his 
hand into his shepherd’s bag and drew out a 


stone and slung it. His aim was so true that 
44 


the stone hit the giant in the forehead and killed 
him. 


When the Philistines saw that their leader 
was dead, they fled back to their own land. 
Thus a shepherd lad saved his country from 
its enemies and so became the king’s son-in-law; 
and many years afterwards he himself became 
kirg, 
45 


THE LARKS IN THE WHEAT 
A STORY TO PLAY 


(A mother lark builds her nest in a wheat 
‘field and soon has a fine family of young larks. 
One day, when the wheat is nearly ripe, the 
mother lark goes to look for food for her young 
ones. While she is away, the farmer and his 
son come to look at the wheat.) 

Farmer: My son, this wheat is almost ripe. 
Let us go and ask our neighbors to cut it for us 
to-morrow. 

(The farmer and his son go away. Soon the 
mother lark returns home.) 

Young Lark: O, mother, mother, what shall 
we do? What shall we do? While you were away 
the farmer came with his son to look at the wheat. 
He told his son that they would ask their neigh- 
bors to cut the wheat to-morrow. We cannot 
fly. What shall we do? © 

Mother Lark: Do not fear, my child. If the 
farmer waits for his neighbors to do his work 
for him, the wheat will not be cut to-morrow. 

(Next morning the mother lark goes to find 
food for her young ones, and again the farmer 

46 


and his son come to the wheat field.) 

Farmer: This wheat is ripe. Our neighbors 
have not cut it for us, so I shall ask our cousins 
to cut it to-morrow. 

(The farmer and his son go-away and the 
mother lark returns home.) 

Young Lark: O, mother, what shall we do? 
To-day the farmer came again with his son and 
said, ‘‘As our neighbors have not cut the wheat, 
I shall ask our cousins to cut it to-morrow.” 

Mother Lark: Do not fear, my child. If the 
farmer waits for his cousins to do his work for 
him, the wheat will not be cut to-morrow. 

(Next morning the mother lark goes away to 
find food for her young ones, and again the 
farmer and his son come to look at the wheat.) 

Farmer: My son, neither our neighbors nor 
our cousins have cut the wheat for us. We can 
wait no longer; we must cut it ourselves to- 
morrow. 

(The farmer and his son go away and the 
mother lark returns home.) 

Young Lark: O, mother, what shall we do? 


The farmer came to-day with his son and said, 
47 


ws 
V7 


Pema Pose 
- 
Seo 


“‘Neither our neighbors nor our cousins have 
cut the wheat for us, so we must cut it ourselves 


to-morrow.” 

Mother Lark: Now it is time for us to go. 
When a man decides to do his work himself, 
you may be sure that it will be done. Try 
your wings, my children, and see if you can Tly. 

Young Larks: I can fly! I can fly! I can fly! 

(All the larks fly away.) 

48 


THE BROWN THRUSH 


There s a merry brown thrush sitting up in a tree, 
He’s singing to you! He’s singing to me! 

. And what does he say, little girl, little boy? 
“Oh, the world’s running over with joy! 

Don’t you hear? Don’t you see? 

Hush! Look! In my tree, 

I’m as happy as happy can be!”’ 


And the brown thrush keeps singing, ‘‘A nest do 
you see, 

And five eggs hid by me in the old elm tree? 

Don’t meddle! Don’t touch! little girl, little boy, 

Or the world will lose some of its joy. 

Now I’m glad! Now I’m free! 

And I always shall be, 


If you never bring sorrow to me.”’ 


So the merry brown thrush sings away in the tree, 
To you and to me, to you and to me, 

And he sings all the day, little girl, little boy, 
“Oh, the world’s running over with joy! 

But long it won’t be, 

Don’t you know? Don’t you see? 

- Unless we are as good as can be!”’ 


—Lucy Larcom. 
49 


THE SKYLARK’S SPURS 


Many years ago, there was a fairy who had 
one very bad habit. She was fond of finding 
fault with other people. 

One day, when she had been saying unkind 
things of some of her friends, her mother said, 
“Tf you knew a little more of the world, I think 
you would not find so many things to complain 
of. So I advise you to go on a long journey. 
You will find plenty of food, for the cowslips 
are now in blossom, and they contain excellent 
honey. I need not be anxious about your lodg- 
ing; for there is nothing better to sleep in than 
an empty robin’s nest.” 

The young fairy was anxious to travel, so she 
bade her mother good-by and set out. She 
flew over the country-side until she came to a 
large meadow with a clear river on one side of 
it and some tall oak-trees on the other. There, 
after her long flight, she sat down to rest beside 
a hedge. She was thinking of taking a nap 
when she heard a deep sigh. Peeping forth from 


her pleasant resting place among the hawthorn 
50 


blossoms, she saw a fine young skylark sitting 
in the long grass. 

“What is the matter?” asked the fairy. 

“Oh, I am so unhappy,” replied the poor 
skylark. ‘‘I want to build a nest, but I have 
no mate.” 

“Then, why don’t you look for a mate?” 
asked the fairy, laughing at him. ‘‘Do you 
expect one to come and look for you? Fly up 
and sing a beautiful song in the sky, and then 
perhaps some pretty bird will hear you. If you 
tell her that you will help her to build a nest, 
and that you will sing to her all day long, it 
may be that she will be willing to be your 
mate.” 

“Oh, I don’t like to fly up,” said the lark. 
“T am so ugly. If I were a yellow-bird with 
black wings, or a robin with red feathers on 
my breast, I should not mind my faults. But 
I am only a poor, brown skylark, and I know 
that I shall never be able to find a mate.” 

‘You cannot expect to have everything,” said 
the fairy. ‘‘Besides, you can never tell what you 


can do until you try. Let me see you fly up.” 
51 


THE SPURS 

‘Oh, but you don’t know,” said the lark, ‘‘that 
if I fly up, my feet will be seen; and no other 
bird has feet like mine. My claws are enough 
to frighten anyone; and yet I am not a fighting 
bird.” 

‘Let me look at your claws,” said the fairy. 

So the lark lifted up one of his feet, which 
he had kept hidden in the long grass. 

‘‘Are you sure that you never use your claws 
to fight with?” asked the fairy. 

“No, never,” said the lark. ‘I hae never 
fought in my life; but still these claws grow 
longer and longer. I am so ashamed of their 
being seen that I often le here in the grass, 
instead of flying up toward the sky to sing as 
I should like to do.” 

“Tf I were you, I should pull them off,” said 
the fairy. 

‘That is easier said than done,’ answered the 
poor skylark. | | 

‘Well, I am sorry for you,” said the fairy. 
“At the same time, you must like ip Bast: or 


you would not have such long spurs.” 
52 


“That 1s Just what I am always afraid people 
will say,” sighed the skylark. 

“Nothing is given to us unless-it is of some 
use,’ said the fairy. ‘‘You would not have 
wings unless you were to fly, or a voice unless 
you were to sing. Nor would you have those 
spurs unless you were to fight. If your spurs 
are not for fighting, what are they for?”’ 

“T am sure I don’t know,” said the skylark, 
lifting up one foot and looking at it. “Then 
you are not willing to help me? I thought you 
might We willing to say to my friends that I do 
not like to quarrel.”’ 

“No, I cannot help you. Looks are much 
against you,”’ answered the fairy. “It is quite 
plain that those spurs are meant to fight with. 
Good morning.”’ 

So the fairy flew up into an oak tree, and the 
skylark sat in the grass with his head bowed. 

Soon, a grasshopper came chirping up to the 
skylark and tried to comfort him. ‘I heard 
all that the fairy said to you,” said the grass- 
hopper; “‘but I have known you for some time, 


and I have never seen you fight or look angry. 
53 


I shall tell everyone that you are a very good- 
natured bird, and that you are looking for a 
mate. Nevertheless,’ he continued, ‘‘I should 
be glad if you could tell me what is the use of 
those claws. The question might be asked of 
me, and I should not know what to answer.” 

“Grasshopper,” replied the skylark, ‘“‘I can 
not tell what they are for. That is the truth.” 

“Well,” said the grasshopper, ‘time will tell.” 
Then he went away. 

The skylark was happy because the grass- 
hopper had paused to speak with him. He flew 
up into the air, and as he rose higher and higher, 
his song grew sweeter and louder. 

The ants, who were carrying seeds to their 
houses, stopped to listen. The doves stopped 
cooing, and the little field-mice came and sat 
in the openings of their holes. 


THE LITTLE BROWN LARK 


A pretty brown lark, who had been sitting 
under some leaves, peeped out and said, “I 
never heard such a beautiful song in my life— 


no, never!” 
54 ahi 


“Tt was sung by my friend, the skylark,” 
said the grasshopper. ‘‘He is a very good- 
natured bird, and he wants a mate.” 

‘“Hush!”’ said the pretty brown lark. ‘‘I want 
to hear the end of that wonderful song.” And 
she held her breath, for she did not want to lose 
a single note. 

‘Well done, my friend!” said the grasshopper, 
when the skylark came down again. Then he 
told him how pleased the brown lark had been 
with his song, and he asked the skylark to go to 
see her. 

The skylark walked carefully, for he did not 
want the brown lark to see his feet. He thought 
that never before had he seen so pretty a bird. 

When she told him how much she loved music, 
he darted up again into the blue sky as if he 
were not at all tired, and sang a song that was 
clearer and sweeter than the first. He was so 
glad that he could please her! 

The grasshopper did not fail to praise his 
friend, and to tell what a cheerful, kind bird he 
was. So when the skylark asked the brown 


lark to overlook his spurs and be his mate, 
55 


she said, “‘I will think about it, for I do not 
mind your spurs very much. I do not think 
I should like you to have short claws like other 
birds, although I cannot say why; for your spurs 
do not seem to be of any use.”’ 

This was good news to the skylark, and he 
sang such sweet songs that he soon won his 
mate. 


THE NEST 


Before long, they built a little nest in the 
grass. The skylark was so happy that he 
almost forgot to be sorry about his long spurs. 

All this time, the fairy was flying about from 
field to field; and I am sorry to say that she, 
seldom went anywhere without saying unkind 
things. When she met the skylark’s friend, she 
said, ‘‘How do you do, Grasshopper?” : 

“Thank you, I am very well and very happy,’’ 
said the grasshopper. ‘‘People are always so 
kind to me.’’ 

“How is your quarrelsome friend, the sky- 
lark?”’ asked the fairy. | 


‘He is not quarrelsome,’ 
56 


y] 


replied the grass- 


hopper. ‘‘I wish you would not say that he 1s.”’ 

‘Oh, well, we need not quarrel about that,” 
said the fairy, laughing. ‘“‘The skylark does 
not wear those long spurs for nothing.”’ 

The grasshopper did not care to quarrel with 
the fairy, so he said, ‘‘I wish you would come and 
see the eggs that the pretty brown lark has in 
hernest. There are three beautiful spotted eggs.”’ 

Off they went together; but they were sur- 
prised to find the little lark trembling and weep- 
ing as she sat upon the nest. 

‘OQ, my pretty eggs!” said the lark as soon 
as she could speak. ‘“‘I am so unhappy about 
them. They will certainly be found.” 

“What is the matter?’ asked the grasshopper. 
‘“Perhaps we can help you.” 

‘Dear Grasshopper,’ said the lark, “I have 
just heard the farmer and his son talking on 
the other side of the hedge. ‘The farmer said 
that to-morrow morning he would begin to cut 
the grass in this meadow.” 

“That is a great pity,” said the grasshopper. 
“What a sad thing it is that you laid your eggs 


on the ground!’ 
57 


‘‘Larks always do,” said the poor little brown 
bird. ‘‘I do not know how to make a nest like 
those in the hedge.’’ Although they were sorry 
for her, neither the grasshopper nor the fairy 
could do anything to help the lark. 

At last, her mate dropped down from the 
white cloud where he had been singing. He was 
frightened when he saw her so sorrowful, with 
the grasshopper and the fairy sitting beside her. 
He asked the cause of her sadness, and when 
she told him, he, too, was very sad. Presently, 
however, he lifted first one foot and then the 
other and looked at his long spurs. 

“Tf I had only laid my eggs on the other side 
of the hedge,’’ sighed the poor little brown lark, 
“they would be safe now.” 

“My dear,’ said the skylark, ‘“‘do not be 
unhappy.” As he said this, he hopped up to 
the nest and laid the claws of one foot upon 
the prettiest egg, and, strange to say, they ex- 
actly fitted it. Then he clasped it with his long 
spurs. 

“Oh, my good mate!” cried the mother bird; 


“do you think that you can carry them away 
58 


for me?”’ 


as he 


3 


d the skylark 


’ replie 
59 


? 
y] 


“To be sure I can 


began to hop slowly and carefully with the egg 
in his right foot. ‘‘T have often’ wondered what 
my spurs could be for, and now I know.” 

As he said this, he hopped gently on with the 
egg, until he came to a safe place on the other 
side of the hedge. There he put it down and 
went back for another. 

“Hurrah!” cried the grasshopper. ‘‘Lark’s 
spurs forever!”’ | 

The fairy said nothing. She felt very much 
ashamed of herself, because she had told the 
skylark that his spurs were meant to fight with. 
She sat looking on in silence until the skylark 
had carried the last of the eggs to the quer side 
of the hedge. 

Then the skylark darted up into the again, 
singing to his mate. He was very happy, be- 
cause at last he knew what his long spurs were 
for. 

Then the fairy said to herself. ‘‘ Well, I could 
_not have believed such a thing. I thought he 
- was a quarrelsome bird, because his spurs were 


so long. I see now that I was wrong, after all.”’ 
—Jean Ingelow. 
60 


THE RAM AND THE PIG 
WHO WENT TO LIVE IN THE WOODS 


A shepherd had a ram that was being fattened 
for killing. The ram had plenty to eat and soon 
became round and fat. 

One day when the dairymaid came to give 
him some food, she said, ‘“‘Ram, you must eat 
allyoucan. You will not have long to live now, 
for we intend to kill you to-morrow.” 

The ram was very much alarmed and said 
to himself, ‘‘Perhaps I can find some way to 
escape.” 

He went on eating, however, until his hunger 
was satisfied. ‘Then he butted his horns against 
the door of his pen and burst it open. As soon 
as he was free, he went straight to a pigsty to 
visit a pig with which he was acquainted. 

‘Good day, and many thanks for your kind- 
ness the last time we met,” said the ram to the 
pig. 

“Good day, and many thanks to you,’ 
the pig. 


‘“Do you know why they make you so com- 
61 


’ said 


fortable and why they feed you so well?’”’ asked 
the ram. 

“No,” said the pig. 

“There are many mouths to be filled on this 
farm,” said the ram; ‘‘so they are going to kill 
you and eat you.”’ 

‘Are they?” asked the pig. ‘‘Much good 
may it do them!’’ | 

“Tf you wish, we will go into the woods and 
build a house and live by ourselves,’ said the 
ram. ‘‘There is nothing like having a home of 
your own.” 

‘Yes, I am quite willing to go,” said the pig. 
‘Tt is fine to be in such good company.” 

When they had gone a short distance, they 
met a goose. 

‘Good day, and many thanks for your kind- 
ness the last time we met,” said the goose. 

‘Good day, and many thanks to you,” said 
the ram. ‘‘We were far too comfortable where 
we were, SO we are going to the woods to make 
a home and live by ourselves. In your own 
house you can be your own master.” 


‘‘T am very comfortable where I am,”’ said the 
62 


goose; ‘“‘but why shouldn’t I go with you? Good 
company makes the day shorter.” 

“What do you think you can do?” asked the 
pig. ‘‘Quacking can never build a hut or a 
house.”’ 

‘Good advice and skill-‘may do as much as a 
giant,’ said the goose. ‘‘I can pick moss and 
stuff it in the cracks to make the house warm.” 

“Well, you may as well come along with us,” 
said the pig. ‘‘I should like to have the house 
warm and comfortable.” 

When the three companions had gone a little 
farther, they met a hare, who came scampering 
out of the woods. 

“Good day, and many thanks for your kind- 
ness the last time we met,” said she. 

“Good day, and many thanks to you,” said 
the ram. ‘‘We were far too comfortable where 
we were, SO we are going to the woods to make a 
house and live by ourselves.” 

‘Well, of course, [ have a home in every bush,”’’ 
said the hare; ‘‘but in winter I have often said 
to myself that if I lived till summer, I should 


build me a house. So now I have a good mind 
63 


Y) 


ia 
’ 


; ’ f y ie 
“ y “ee 
Oy i nii-N\ ‘ Fk 
AR = Rate a A 
; Ay teh Ss 4 
. a t i 


; 
: 
ie 
e 


to go with you and build one after all.”’ 

‘“‘T am afraid you would not be able to help 
us much in building the house,” said the pig; 
“but no doubt you would be able to fight the 
dogs away.” 


‘There is always something for willing hands 
64 


we 
Req Ae 
i 


to do,” said the hare. “I have teeth to gnaw 
pegs with and good paws to knock them into 
the walls; so I shall be a good carpenter.”’ 

“Well, then, come along and help build the 
house,” said the pig. 


When they had gone a little farther on their 
: 65 


way, they met a cock. 

“Good day, and many thanks for your kind- 
ness the last time we met,” said he. 

‘Good day, and many thanks to you,” said 
theram. ‘“ We were far too comfortable at home, 
SO we are going to the woods to make a house 
and live by ourselves.”’ 

‘Well, I am comfortable enough where I am,”’ 
said the cock; “but it is better to have your 
own roost than to sit on a strange perch and 
crow. So if I may join your fine company, I 
will go to the woods with you and help you 
build the house.”’ 

“Tt takes something besides crowing to build 
a house,” said the pig. 

“Tt is not well to live in a house where there 
is neither dog nor rooster,’ said the cock. “I 
rise early and crow early.”’ | 

“Yes, early to rise makes one healthy and 
wealthy and wise,” said the pig. And as he 
was a heavy sleeper, he added, ‘‘We shall be 
glad to have you go with us to crow in the. 
morning.” 


So they all went off to the woods and built 
66 


the house. The pig cut down the trees and the 
ram dragged them home. The hare was the 
carpenter and gnawed the pegs and hammered 
them into the walls and the roof. The goose 
picked moss and stuffed it into the cracks be- 
tween the logs. The cock crowed in the morning 
so that no one overslept. 

When the house was ready and the roof was 
covered with bark, they could at last live by 
themselves; so they were happy and contented. 

“Tt is pleasant to travel both east and west,” 
said the ram; ‘‘but home, after all, is the best.” 

Now, a little farther in the woods two wolves 
had their den. When they saw that a new house 
was being built near them, they wanted to know 
what kind of folk they were to have for neighbors. 
“For,” they said, “it is better to live among 
good neighbors than to travel far and wide.” 

One of the wolves made it his business to call 
at the house and ask for a match to light his 
pipe. The moment he came inside the door, 
the ram rushed at him and butted him with 
his horns, so that the wolf fell in a heap on 


the fire on the hearth. 
67 


The pig bit him, the goose pecked him, and 
the hare scampered about the room and frightened 
the wolf out of his wits. The rooster sat up on a 
rafter and crowed. 

At last the wolf managed to crawl out of 
the house. — 

“Well, to know one’s neighbors is a delight,” 
said the wolf who was waiting outside. “I sup- 
pose you had a grand welcome since you stayed 
so long. But where is the match you went to 
get?” 

‘““A nice lot of neighbors they are,’’ said the 
wolf who had been inside. ‘‘No sooner had 
I entered the house than the shoemaker threw 
his last at me, and I fell on my head in the fire. 
Then two blacksmiths began to pick off my 
flesh with red-hot tongs. The hunter rushed 
about the room looking for his gun, but for- 
tunately he could not find it. Up in the rafters 
sat some one who beat his arms and shouted, 
‘Hook him up! Hook him up!’ If he had 
ever got hold of me, I should not have escaped 


alive.” 
—Peter C. Asbjornsen. 


68 


A THANKSGIVING FABLE 


It was a hungry pussy cat, 

Upon Thanksgiving morn, 
_ And she watched a thankful little mouse 
That ate an ear of corn. 


“Tf. I ate that thankful little mouse, 
How thankful he should be, 

When he has made a meal himself 
To make a meal for me! 


“Then with his thanks for having fed, 
And his thanks for feeding me, 
With all his thankfulness inside, 
How thankful I shall be!”’ 


Thus mused the hungry pussy cat, 
Upon Thanksgiving Day; 

But the little mouse had overheard 
And declined (with thanks) to stay. 


—Oliwer Herford. 


69 


CHILD ROWLAND AND THE 
DARK TOWER 


Rowland, his sister Ellen, and his two brothers ~ 
were playing ball beside the church. To tease 
his playmates, Rowland threw the ball over the 
roof of the church. Ellen ran around to get it, 
but she never came back again. 

After they had waited a long time for her 
return, the three brothers went around the church 
to look for her. But she was not there. They 
thought that she was hiding from them, so they 
searched for her beside the church and in the 
fields. They looked for her everywhere, but they 
could not find her. At last, they gave her up 
for lost and went home to tell their mother. 

The next day, the oldest brother went to 
visit Merlin, a wise old man who knew everything. 

“Can you tell me where I can find my sister 
Ellen?”’ the oldest brother asked of him. 

“The fair Ellen,’ said Merlin, ‘““must have 
been carried off by the fairies because she went 
around the church in the opposite way from the 


sun. ‘The fairies are sure to catch anybody who 
70 


does that.’ 

“How can I find her and bring her back?’ 
asked the oldest brother. 

“She is in the dark tower of the King of 
Elfland,’’ said Merlin: ‘‘None but the bravest 
knight can bring her back again.” 

The oldest brother said that he was not afraid, 
and begged Merlin to teach him how to find 
Ellen. So Merlin taught him. After he had 
repeated the directions over and over again until 
he knew them by heart, the oldest brother set 
out for Elfland. 

Rowland, his mother, and the second brother 
waited a long, long time for the oldest brother 
to return; but he never came back again. 

Then the second brother went to Merlin and 
asked him how he might find Ellen and his 
brother. So Merlin taught him as he had taught 
his older brother. And after he had repeated 
the directions over and over again, the second 
brother set out for Elfland. 

Then there were only Rowland and his mother 
left to wait for his return. They waited many, 


many days; but he never came back again. 
71 


Mi 
ny 


IN 


5 ‘ASS 


ROWLAND GOES TO FIND ELLEN 


At last Rowland asked to be allowed to go to 
find Ellen and his brothers. He was the young- 
est of the four children, and was always called 
Child Rowland. But his mother was afraid to 
have him go because he was so young. Besides, 
she had lost all of her other children, and did 
not wish to lose him, also. Rowland begged 
and begged, however, until at last she let him 
go. She gave him, too, his father’s sword that 
never struck in vain. Then he hurried away to 
find Merlin. 

When he came to the cave where Merlin lived, 
Child Rowland said, ‘Merlin, please tell me 
where I may find my sister Ellen and my 
brothers.” 

“Your sister Ellen and your brothers,” said 
Merlin, ‘“‘are in the dark tower of the King of 
Elfland. If you would bring them back again, 
you must remember two things. They seem 
easy, but they are very hard to remember.” 

“Tell me what these two things are,” said 
Rowland, ‘‘and I shall not fail to do them.” 


“One is something to do,” said Merlin, ‘‘and 
73 


r] 


the other is something not to do.” 

“The thing to do is this: After you enter 
Elfland, cut off the head of every person who 
speaks to you until you meet your sister Ellen. 
The thing not to do is this: Drink not a drop 
and eat not a bite while you are in Elfland. No 
matter how hungry or thirsty you may be, you 
must not eat nor drink. If you do, you will 
never see the earth again.” 

Then Rowland thanked Merlin and hurried 
away to Elfland. After he had traveled for many 
days, he came to the groom who cared for the 
horses of the King of Elfland. 

‘Can you tell me,” said Rowland, “where I 
can find the dark tower of the King of Elfland?”’ 

“T can not tell you,” said the groom; “but 
go on a little farther and you will meet the 
herdsman who tends the cattle of the king. 
Maybe he can tell you the way.”’ 

Then Rowland drew his sword that never 
struck in vain, and cut off the groom’s head. 

Soon he met the herdsman and asked the 
same question he had asked of the groom. 


“T can not tell you,’’ said the herdsman; ‘‘but 
74 


go on a little farther and you will meet the 
woman who feeds the king’s hens. Maybe she 
can tell you the way.” 

Then Rowland drew his sword that never 
struck in vain, and cut off the herdsman’s head. 

Again he went on until he met the woman 
who fed the king’s hens. He asked her the 
same question he had asked of the others. 

“Go on a little farther,’ said the woman. 
“Then you will come to a round green hill with 
circular paths around it. Go around the hill 
three times in the opposite way from the sun. 
Each time you go around, say, 

““*Qpen, door! open, door! 
And let me come in!’ 
The third time you say that, the door will open, 
so that you may go in.” 

Rowland thanked the woman for what she 
had told him. He was just ready to go on, 
when he remembered what Merlin had told him 
to do. So he drew his sword that never struck 
in vain, and cut off the woman’s head. 

Then Rowland went on, and on, until he came 


to the green hill with circular paths around it. 
75 


” 


THE GREEN HILL 


He went around the hill three times in the 
opposite way from the sun. Each time he said, 

| “Open, door! open, door! 

And let me come in!” 

The third time he said this, the door opened. 
He went in, and the door shut itself behind him. 

He found himself in a hall that led into a 
great room which was almost as large as the 


green hill itself. The sides and the roof were 
76 


like those of a great stone church. Everywhere 
were ornaments of diamonds and other precious 
stones, and flowers made of silver and gold. In 
the center of the roof was a lamp made of one 
oreat pearl. It lighted the whole room as if 
the rays of the sun were shining there. At one 
end of the room was a couch made of gold and 
covered with velvet. And on the couch sat Ellen, 
combing her golden hair with a silver comb. 

When she saw Rowland, she stood up. ‘‘God 
pity you, you unlucky child!” she said. ‘How 
could you be so foolish as to come for me? If you 
had a thousand lives to lose, you could not go 
back from here.”’ 

Rowland and Ellen kissed each other, and 
sat down side by side on the couch. He told 
her of all that had happened on his way to 
Elfland. She told him that their two brothers 
had come to the dark tower, and had been 
enchanted by the king. They were now locked 
up in one of the rooms. 

Rowland was weary from his long journey. 
He forgot all about the warning Merlin had 


given him, and asked Ellen for something to © 
77 


eat and drink. Ellen began to cry, but she 
was under a spell and could not warn him. So 
she went to the pantry and brought him some 
bread and a golden bowl full of milk. 

He was just going to raise the bowl to his 
lips, when he looked up at his sister. Then 
remembering why he had come so far to find 
her, he dashed the bowl to the floor, and said: 


“Not a drop will I drink, 
Not a bite will I eat, 
Until Ellen is set free!’ 

Just at that moment, the King of Elfland 
rushed into the room. But Rowland drew his 
sword that never struck in vain, and gave the 
king such a blow that he fell to the floor and 
begged for his life. Rowland agreed to spare 
him if he would free Ellen and his brothers. 

The king consented to do this. So Rowland 
and Ellen and the two older brothers returned 
home to their mother. And you may be sure 
that Ellen never went around the church again 


in the opposite way from the sun. 
—Old English Fairy Tale. 


78 


THE FAIRIES 
Up the airy mountain, 
Down the rushy glen, 
We daren’t go a-hunting 
For fear of little men; 
Wee folk, good folk, 
Trooping all together; 
Green jacket, red cap, 


And white owl’s feather! 


Down along the rocky shore 
Some make their home; 

They live on crispy pancakes 
Of yellow tide-foam; 

Some in the reeds 
Of the black mountain-lake, 

With frogs for their watch-dogs, 
All night uae | 


High on the hilltop 
The old King sits; 
He is now so old and gray 
He’s nigh lost his wits. 
With a bridge of white mist 
Columbkill he crosses, 
On his stately journeys 
From Slieveleague to Rosses; 
Or going up with music 
On cold starry nights, 
To sup with the Queen | 
Of the gay Northern Lights. 


They stole little Bridget 
For seven years long— 
When she came down again 
Her friends were all gone. 
They took her lightly back 
Between the night and morrow; 
They thought that she was fast asleep, 


But she was dead with sorrow. 
80 


They have kept her ever since 
Deep within the lakes, 

On a bed of flag-leaves, 
Watching till she wakes. 

By the craggy hillside, 
Through the mosses bare, 

They have planted thorn trees 
For pleasure here and there. 

Is any man so daring 
As dig one up in spite, 

He shall find the thornies set 
In his bed at night. 


Up the airy mountain, 
Down the rushy glen, 
We daren’t go a-hunting 
For fear of little men; 
Wee folk, good folk, 
Trooping all together; 
Green jacket, red cap, 


And white owl’s feather! 


—William Allingham. 
81 


BLUNDER AND THE WISHING GATE 


Blunder was going to the Wishing Gate to 
wish for a pair of ponies and a little coach like 
Tom Thumb’s. Of course, you can have your 
wish if you once find the gate. But how are 
you to find it? 

It is not a great gate with a sign at the top 
like this: 

WISHING GATE 

It is only an old stile in a meadow. There 
are plenty of old stiles in meadows; so how are 
you to tell which is the right one? 

Blunder’s fairy godmother knew, but she could 
not tell him. She could only tell him to follow 
the road and to ask the way of the first owl he 
should meet. 

Blunder was a very careless little boy and did. 
not often find anything; so his fairy godmother 
had to warn him. Over and over again she 
said to him, ‘‘Be sure you don’t miss him. Be 
sure you don’t miss him. Be sure you don’t 
pass him by.” | 

“No, indeed, I will not,’ said Blunder, as 


he started off. 
82 


Soon he saw an owl in an oak tree and called 
out, “Good Mr. Owl, will you please show me 
the way to the Wishing Gate?” 

“What is that?’ asked the owl, awakening 
from his nap. ‘‘Have you brought me a frog?”’ 

“Oh, no,” said Blunder. “TI did not know 
that you would like one. Can you tell me the 
way to the Wishing Gate?”’ 

“Wishing Gate! Wishing Gate!”’ hooted the 
owl, for he was very angry at being disturbed. 
‘How dare you wake me to ask such a foolish 
question? Follow your nose, sir. Follow your 
nose.”’ 

Then the owl fell asleep again. 

Blunder knew as little as before. How could 
he follow his nose? His nose would turn to the 
right or to the left, whichever way his legs car- 
ried him. What was the use of asking the owl, 
if that was all she could say? 

A chipmunk came down the path. When she 
saw Blunder, she stopped short with a little 
squeak. 

“Good Mrs. Chipmunk, can you tell me the 


way to the Wishing Gate?’’ asked Blunder. 
83 


‘No, I can not,’ said the. chipmunk.) ~ 1 
have to gather nuts and care for my family, so 
I have no time to visit anybody. But if you 
follow the brook, you will find an old water 
sprite under a stone. JI am sure he can tell 
you the way.” 

Blunder followed the brook, but he did not 
see the stone or the water sprite. He was saying 
to himself, ‘I don’t know where he is, I can’t 
find him,” when he saw a frog sitting on a wet 
stone. 

‘“Mr. Frog,”’ said he, ‘‘can you show me the 
way to the Wishing Gate?”’ 

‘“‘T can not,” said the frog; ‘‘but over there 
in the pine tree you will find an old crow. I 
am sure he can tell you, for he is a great 
traveler.”’ 

‘“‘T don’t know where the pine tree is,” said 
Blunder. ‘I am sure I could never find it.”’ 

However, he went on up the brook. He did 
not see the crow in the pine; but he was tired 
from walking, so he sat down to rest. Soon he. 
heard tiny voices in angry conversation. 

“Go away! Go away, I tell you! I have just 

84 


) 


heard knock! knock! knock! all day long. First 
came a wasp, then a bee, then another wasp, 
then another bee. Now you have come. Go 
away, I say. I will not let you come in.” 

“T want some honey and I will come in,” 
said the other voice. 

Blunder looked, and close beside him he saw 
a bee which was talking to a morning-glory elf 
that was curled up in a great red flower. 

‘Mr. Elf, can you tell me the way to the 
Wishing Gate?’’ asked Blunder. 

’ No; I can mot,” said= the velt; bution 
will walk in this path, you will meet the dream- 
man. Hehasabagful of dreams on his shoulder. 
If any one can tell you the way to the Wishing 
Gate, he can.” 

‘How can I find him?” asked Blunder. 

“T am sure I don’t know,” answered the elf, 

, unless you look for him.” 

Since there was no help for it, Blunder had 
to go on. He soon passed the dream-man, who 
was asleep under a hazel bush with his bag of 
good and bad dreams under his head. 


Blunder had a habit of not using his eyes. 
86 


At home when he was told to find anything, he 
would say, “‘I don’t know where it is. I can’t 
find it.” Then his mother or sister would find 
it for him. 

He passed the dream-man without seeing him 
and went on until he met Jack-o’-lantern. 

“Can you show me the way to the Wishing 
Gate?’’ asked Blunder. 

“With pleasure, sir,” replied Jack, as he took 
up his lantern. ‘‘Thisis the way. Follow me.” 

Blunder kept close behind him; but in watch- 
ing the lantern, he forgot to look at his feet, 
and he soon fell into a deep mud-hole. 

“Wait a minute! The Wishing Gate is not 
down there,” called out Jack, as he flew off 
among the tree-tops. 

Blunder was a very angry little boy when he 
crept out of the hole. 

“T don’t know where the Wishing Gate is,” 
said he, as he began to cry. “I shall go straight 
home and not look for it any more.” 


THE WOOD GOBLIN’S HOUSE 
Just as he said that, he stepped upon an 
87 


old moss-covered stump. It was the chimney 
of a wood goblin’s house and it broke under 
his weight. Down, down he fell among the 
pots and the pans in which the cook was making 
the goblin’s supper. 

The old goblin was asleep upstairs; but the 
noise aroused him and he ran down to the kitchen 
to see what was the matter. The cook was 
afraid and tried to hide Blunder. 

“Be quick!” said she. ‘If my master catches 
you, he will have you made into a pie in a minute. 
In the next room you will find a pair of magic 
shoes. Jump into them and they will take you 
up the chimney.” 

Blunder ran into the next room; but he could 
not find the shoes, for he was not in the habit 
of using his eyes. 

‘“T can’t find them! I can’t find them!’ sobbed 
Blunder as he ran back to the cook. 

“Then run into the closet,’”’ said she. 

‘“T don’t know where it is! I don’t know where 
it is!’’ said he, as he raced around the room. 

‘Jump into the meal chest!” called the cook. 


But Blunder couldn’t find that either. 
88 


“There is a cloak hanging on that peg,” said 
she. ‘‘ Wrap it around you.” 

By this time the goblin was half way down 
the stairs; but Blunder could no more see the 
cloak than he could find the shoes or the closet 
or the meal chest. Fortunately, he caught his 
foot in it and pulled it over him as he fell to 
the floor. There he lay hardly daring to breathe. 

“What was all that noise about?’’ asked the 
goblin as he came into the kitchen. 

“The pans fell down,” said the cook. 

The goblin could see nothing wrong, so he 
went grumbling upstairs again. Then the cook 
got the shoes for Blunder, and they took him 
up the chimney and set him down in the meadow. 

He was safe enough now, but he was hungry; 
and it was dark and he did not know the way 
home. He saw an old stile, so he climbed up 
and sat on it, for he was too tired to stir. 


THE SOUTH WIND 
Just then, along came South Wind with his 
pockets full of showers. As he was going that 


way, he took Blunder home with him. Of course, 
89 | 


he was very glad to go, but he would have 
liked it better if the south wind had not laughed 
all the way. 

“What are you laughing at?” he asked at 
last. 

“T saw two funny things in my travels,” said 
the wind. ‘One was a hen that starved while 
she sat in front of a bushel of grain.” 

‘‘ And what was the other?’’ asked Blunder. 

“The other was a little boy who sat on the 
top of the Wishing Gate and asked me to carry 
him home because he could not find it.” 

“What was that? What was that?” called 
Blunder, as the wind rushed on and left him at 
his own door. He entered the house and found 
his fairy godmother and all the rest of the family 
sitting about the fire. 

“What luck? What luck?” cried everybody at 
once. ‘‘ Where is the Wishing Gate?”’ 

‘‘T don’t know where it is,” replied Blunder. 
‘“‘T could not find it.” 

Then he told them all the troubles he nee 
met in trying to find it. 


‘Poor little boy!” said his mother, Kissing, 
90 


him; while his sister ran to get him some bread 
and milk. 

“That sounds very fine,” said his godmother. 
“Now hear my story. There was once a little 
boy who asked to go to the Wishing Gate. 
He did not know the way; but his fairy god- 
mother showed him the road to start with, and 
told him to ask the way of the first owl he met. 

“This little boy never used his eyes, so he 
passed the first owl and waked up the wrong one. 
He passed the water sprite and found only the 
frog. He sat down under the pine tree and 
never saw the crow. | 

‘Then he passed the dream-man and ran after 
Jack-o’-lantern. He fell down the goblin’s chim- 
ney and couldn’t find the shoes or the closet or 
the meal chest or the cloak. 

“He sat on top of the Wishing. Gate and 
never knew it, until the south wind came along 
and brought him home. Surely such a stupid 


boy could never find anything.”’ 
—Louise Chollet. 


91 


WISHING 


Ring-ting! I wish I were a Primrose, 

A bright yellow Primrose, blowing in the spring! 
The stooping boughs above me, 

The wandering bee to love me, 

The fern and moss to creep across, 


And the Elm tree for our King! 
92 


Nay-stay! I wish I were an Elm tree, 

A great, lofty Elm tree, with green leaves gay! 
The winds would set them dancing, 

The sun and moonshine glance in, 

The birds would house among the boughs, 
And sweetly sing. 


Oh, no! I wish I were a Robin, 

A Robin or a little Wren, everywhere to go; 
Through forest, field, or garden, 

And ask no leave or pardon, 

Till winter comes with icy thumbs 

To ruffle up our wings! 


Well-tell! Where should I fly to, 

Where go to sleep in the dark wood or dell? 
Before a day was over, 

Home comes the rover, 

For mother’s kiss—sweeter this 


Than any other thing. 
—William Allingham. 


93 


CINDERELLA 

Once upon a time, there was a man who had 
a good and beautiful daughter. Her mother 
was dead, and she and her father lived alone in 
a little house near a great city. 

Before long the father married again. His 
new wife was a proud and cruel woman, who 
had two daughters of her own. ‘They were as 
cross and ugly as her husband’s daughter was 
kind and beautiful. 

The new mother and her daughters disliked 
the new sister and treated her unkindly. She 
had to sweep the floors, wash the dishes, and 
tend the fires. Indeed, she spent so much of 
her time near the fireplace in the company of 
the pots, the kettles, and the cinders that her 
sisters called her Cinderella. 

Her sisters had many fine clothes, but Cinder- 
ella had nothing to wear except the old worn- 
out dresses that her sisters gave her. And yet, 
she was far more beautiful in her faded and 
ragged dresses than they were in their new gowns 
of silk and satin. 


One summer evening, the king’s son had a 
94 


grand ball to which all the rich men and women 
of the city were invited. Cuinderella’s mother 
and sisters were invited; but, of course, Cinder- 
ella had to stay at home to mind the kitchen 
fire. Besides, she had no fine dress or jewels 
to wear. 

To make her lot still harder to bear, on the 
day before the party, Cinderella had to iron 
the fine linen that her sisters were to wear. She 
did not often complain, but she could not help 
wishing that she could go to the ball with her 
sisters. 

On the evening of the party, Cinderella helped 
her sisters to dress and arrange their hair. They 
did not even thank her for helping them, and 
one of them tried to tease her by saying, ‘‘Cinder- 
ella, wouldn’t you like to go to the party?” 

‘No, sister,’ said Cinderella. ‘‘You are only 
making fun of me. You know I have no clothes 
to wear to a party.”’ 

“You are right,” said the sister. ‘‘People 
would only laugh to see a cinder-girl in such a 
place.”’ 


Cinderella was tender-hearted, and although 
95 


x ‘Aggy , 
‘ L&- - 


her sisters treated her so unkindly, she would 
not do anything to injure them. She combed 
their hair as well as she could, and arranged 
their sashes and jewels in the most attractive 
way. 

When the rest of the family set out for the 
ball, Cinderella wished them all a good time 
and then went back to weep in the chimney 
corner. 

THE FAIRY GODMOTHER 

While she sat there weeping, her fairy god- 
mother came to her. ‘“‘Why are you weeping, 
my little daughter?’’ she asked. 

Cinderella had never before seen her fairy god- 
mother, and she was greatly surprised; but she 
managed to say between her sobs, ‘“‘Oh, I should 
so like to go to the ball! I should so like to 
go to the ball!” 

“Well, I think we can arrange that,’ said the 
godmother. “‘Run into the garden and bring me 
the largest pumpkin you can find.”’ 

Cinderella did not ask any questions; she ran 
to the garden and brought the pumpkin. The 


godmother touched it with her wand and at once 
96 


it became a dainty little coach, lined with soft 
yellow velvet. 

“Now bring me the mouse-trap,”’ said the god- 
mother. 

Cinderella hurried to get the trap. There were 
six little mice in it, and the godmother opened 
the door to let them out. As soon as she touched 
them with her wand, they became fine black 
horses with gilded harnesses. 

In the rat-trap was a monster-rat; and he was 
changed into a tall coachman with shiny buttons 
on his coat. 

Then the fairy godmother said: ‘‘Go into the 
garden and bring in the six lizards that are hiding 
behind the watering pot.”’ 

When Cinderella returned with the lizards, the 
godmother changed them into six footmen with 
bright red coats and shiny black hats. They stood 
up as straight on the back of the coach as if 
they had always been footmen. 

‘My fairy daughter,” said her godmother, 
“now you can go to the ball.” 

“Oh, yes,’ replied Cinderella; “‘but must I go 


in these rags?”’ 
i" 97 


tS, COIR fe 
id IE 


98 


Then the godmother touched Cinderella with 
her fairy wand, and in a moment the ragged 
dress was changed into the finest silk with orna- 
ments of gold and silver. There were also sparkling 
jewels in Cinderella’s hair; but the most wonderful 
of all the things that she wore were tiny glass 
slippers that looked like diamonds. 

Cinderella was delighted. She said, ‘‘’Thank 
you! thank you!’’ so many times that at last 
her fairy godmother had to stop her. 

“Hurry, my darling,” she said. “It is late 
now, and you must leave for home before the 
clock strikes twelve. If you stay one minute after 
midnight, your coach will become a pumpkin, 
your horses will be mice, your coachman will 
be a rat, your footmen will be lizards, and 
your fine clothes will become rags.” 

Cinderella promised to obey her godmother. ~ 
Then the footmen helped her into the coach and 
she was whirled away to the palace. 


THE BALL 


The king’s son saw the coach coming and ran 


to meet the beautiful princess. When they en- 
| 99 


tered the ball room, everybody said, ‘“What a 
beautiful princess! I wonder who she is!’’ But 
nobody could tell. 

All the ladies admired her and decided to 
have gowns made exactly like hers, if any dress- 
maker could find the pattern. 

Cinderella danced with the king’s son, and 
at supper he sat beside her. Indeed, he hardly 
left her side during the whole evening. 

Once, she asked to be excused, and went and 
sat down beside her sisters. They did not know 
her and were surprised that such a great princess 
should notice them. She also gave them some 
of the fruit that the prince had given to her. 

Soon the clock in the church tower began 
to strike. It said, ‘'1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4.” 
Cinderella knew it was a quarter before twelve; 
so taking leave of the king, the queen, and 
the prince, she hurried to her carriage and reached 
home before midnight. 

Her fairy godmother was waiting for her in | 
the kitchen. Cinderella told her all about the 
good time she had had and asked to be allowed 


to go to the ball the next evening. But her 
100 


godmother did not stay to answer, for just then 
the two sisters rushed into the room. 

They were greatly excited and both tried to 
talk at once. “O, Cinderella,” they said, ‘‘the 
most wonderful princess that ever was seen came 
to the ball!” 

“What was her name?” inquired Cinderella. 

“Nobody knows,” said one of the sisters; 
“and the king’s son would give the whole world 
to know who she is.”’ 

- Cinderella smiled. ‘‘Was she so very beau- 
tiful?’’ she asked. ‘‘How I should like to see 
her.”’ 

Then she begged one of her sisters to lend 
her the yellow dress that she wore on Sundays, 
so that she, too, might go to the ball the next 
evening to see the princess. 

“What? Lend my dress to a cinder-girl?”’ said 
the sister. ‘‘Certainly not!’’ 

The next evening, the two sisters again went 
to the ball. Cinderella also went, but not at 
the same time. She had the same coach, the 
same coachman, and the same footmen as be- 


fore. And her clothes were even more wonderful 
101 


than those she wore the previous evening, ex- 
cept that she wore the very same little glass 
slippers. 

Everybody was delighted with her, and the 
prince would not leave her side for even a min- 
ute. The evening was soon gone, however, and 
before Cinderella was aware of it, the clock began 
to strike twelve. 


THE GLASS SLIPPER 


Without taking leave of anybody, she fled 
from the palace. In her flight, she lost one of 
her dainty slippers. It was found by the prince 
who offered a reward to anyone who could find 
the princess. 

Soon the sisters came home and told how 
the ball had ended when the princess ran away. 

The next day, and for several days, the prince 
sent messengers to call out in the streets: 

“The king’s son will marry the maiden whose 
foot fits the little glass slipper!”’ 

Every fine princess of the king’s court, and 
many a humble maid as well, tried to force 


her foot into the slipper; but the slipper was 
102 


too small for any of them. At last, when no 
more maidens came to try on the slipper, the 
prince sent messengers into the homes of the 
city to seek the lost princess. 

Since her sisters were unable to wear the slip- 
per, Cinderella asked to be allowed to try. Her 
sisters laughed at her; but the messenger said 
that every maiden who wished should be per- 
mitted to try on the slipper. 

Of course, the slipper exactly fitted Cinder- 
ella’s dainty little foot. Then she took the mate 
from her pocket and put it on the other foot. 
At once, the fairy godmother appeared and 
touched Cinderella with her wand, and her ragged 
dress was changed to the beautiful gown that 
she had worn to the ball. 

The sisters were astonished. ‘They threw them- 
selves at Cinderella’s feet and begged her pardon 
for their unkind treatment of her. Of course, 
she fully forgave them; for she was always kind 
and gentle. 

In a few days, Cinderella and the prince were 
married, and lived happily ever after 

—EHnglish Fairy Tale. 
103 


THE PRINCESS AND THE SUNBEAM 

A charming little princess was very, very ill. 
She had been ill for so many weeks that the 
roses had left her pretty cheeks, her bright blue 
eyes had become heavy, and she was altogether 
a very drooping little flower. 

The king, the queen, and the courtiers were 
very sad and anxious, because they all dearly 
loved the little princess. The king, in fact, would 
have given his crown and his kingdom to make 
her well again; but I am glad to say that he 
did not have to do so. The court physician 
managed it. It was a great deal of trouble, 
but he pulled her through, as the saying is, 
and the king made him a lord; which has nothing 
whatever to do with the story. 

Well, the little princess lay in bed getting 
better. She was much too weak to move yet; 
but her bed was pulled near to the window and 
she was propped up with pillows so that she 
might look out. Directly under her window 
was a lovely garden filled with the most beauti- 
ful flowers and trees. At the end of the garden 


was a high wall, and beyond the wall the princess 
104 


could see the upper part of a row of humble 
dwelling-houses. 

She was very much interested in these houses, 
or rather, I should say, in a particular window 
of one of the houses; for at that window there 
was another little girl, about the same age as 
the princess, and she also was ill. Her bed, 
too, had been pulled near to the window, and 
she also had been propped up with pillows so 
that she might look out. The two children 
gazed at one another the live-long day, and each 
wondered what the other thought about and 
did. 

After a time, they began to wave their hands 
to each other—the princess and the poor girl 
—and so a strange friendship sprang up between 
them. 

But one day, the little girl in the humble 
dwelling did not appear at her window; and 
when she was still missing on the following 
day, the princess became anxious. She must 
know what had happened to her little friend. 
She had told no one of her new acquaintance, 


so whom was she to ask? 
105 


“T really must know,” she said, aloud. The 
sun shone suddenly into the room, and to her 
surprise she received an answer. 

“What must you know, princess?” said a 
pleasant voice. 


THE SUNBEAM 


The princess was greatly surprised to hear 
the voice, but she soon discovered that it was 
the sunbeam resting on her bed that was talking 
to her. 

“Oh, Sunbeam, I am so glad you spoke,” 
cried the princess. “I want to know about 
the little girl who lives in that house yonder. 
She used to come to the window every day and 
wave her hand to me; and now that she has 
not been there for two days, I am afraid she is 
worse.” 

“Well, princess,” said the sunbeam, playing 
with the girl’s golden hair and kissing back 
the roses into the pale cheeks, ‘‘I happen to 
know about that poor child. I have never seen 
her myself; but my friend the swallow looks 
in at the window often, and he told me about 
her. The swallow and I are great friends.” 

“Well, Sunbeam, go on,” said the princess. 

‘She is worse, princess,”’ replied the sunbeam, 
“much worse. She has been ill for a long time; 
but now she cannot sit up in bed.”’ 


“Oh, dear me how very terrible!” said the 
107 


) 


princess. ‘‘But, Sunbeam, she must be made 
better—must be made better! Tell me what will 
do her good.” 

‘The fact is, I am the person to do her good. 
She wants me,” said the yellow sunbeam. 

‘Then why don’t you go to her?” asked the 
princess, a little crossly. ‘‘And that reminds 
me, you said you had never seen her. How is 
that?”’ 

“Well, to tell you the truth, I can’t get there,” 
replied the sunbeam. 

‘“‘Can’t get there?’’ repeated the princess. 

“No, I have tried hard,’ went on the sun- 
beam; ‘‘but there is always something in the 
way. Like most things in the world, I can not 
do everything I like.’’ 

“T must look into this,” remarked the prin- 
cess, sternly. ‘‘I will speak to my father, the 
king, about it.” 

That, in the eyes of the princess, settled the 
matter. The sunbeam would have to find its 
way to the poor girl’s window. So there! 

Shortly after this the sunbeam left, for the 


evening made its appearance. ‘The princess then 
108 


) 


sent for the king—for allow me to tell you that, 
although the king ruled over a great country 
and a great people, his little girl ruled over him. 

Then she told him the story of her sick friend, 
and insisted that he should compel the sunbeam 
to shine on her; and the king promised that it 
should be done. He would see the sunbeam 
himself about it in the morning; and so he 
did. He saw the sunbeam in the morning, but 
it had no effect. The sunbeam could not shine 
in at that little window. 

The king was annoyed at this. He called 
for all the magicians in the land, and asked the 
question: ‘‘How was the sun to shine on that 
little girl?” 

The magicians pulled their hair, and pulled 
their beards, and stayed up all night; but for 
all that they could not answer the question. 

So the poor little girl grew worse, and the 
princess became ill again through fretting, and 
the king turned into a very angry king indeed. 
In fact, the court and the courtiers were quite 
beside themselves, which is a state of things 


not to be desired. 
109 


Then the king offered a great prize for an 
answer to the question; and, lo and behold, 
some one discovered an answer! There came to 
the palace a little child of ten. He was brought 
before the king and he said: 

“The way for the sun to shine on my little 
sister, O King, is for her to be carried to a room 
that has windows on the south side. Where 
she 1s now the sun can never touch her.”’ 

Then the king sprang to his feet, and clasped 
the boy by the hand, and made him an earl 
on the spot. 

So the poor girl was taken to a house that had 
windows on the south side, where the sun was 
always shining. Then the sunbeam kissed her 
cheeks, as it kissed the cheeks of the princess, 
and health and strength came back to both of 
them. In a little time, the girl who had lived 
in the house beyond the garden wall became a 
lady-in-waiting at the king’s court, and all were 
merry and happy. 

So let us remember the blessings of God’s 


sunshine. 
—Edric Vredenburg. 


110 


A CHILD’S PRAYER 


God make my life a little light, 
Within the world to glow— 

A tiny flame that burneth bright, 
Wherever I may go. 


God make my life a little flower, 
That bringeth joy to all, 

Content to bloom in native bower, 
Although its place be small. 


God make my life a little song, 
That comforteth the sad, 

That helpeth others to be strong, 
And makes the singer glad. 


God make my life a little staff, 
Whereon the weak may rest, 
That so what health and strength I have 


May serve my neighbors best. 
—M. Bentham Edwards. 


Bei 


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Y, ft 


EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE 
MOON 


A poor farmer had many children, but he 


had little food and few clothes to give them. 
112 


They were all beautiful children, but the young- 
est daughter, who was named Elsa, was the 
most beautiful of all. 

One stormy winter night, the family was seated 
about the fire. Presently, some one tapped three 
times on the window pane. | 

The father looked out of the window; but 
as the night was very dark he could see no one; 
so he opened the door. ‘There before him stood 
a big white bear. — 

“Good evening!” said the white bear. 

“The same to you!” said the man. 

“Tf you will give me your youngest daughter, 
I will make you rich,” said the white bear. 

“T will not give her to you,” said the man. 

Then he went into the house and shut the 
door. 

“Think it over,’ shouted the white bear. “I 
shall come back again next week.” 

The white bear went away; but the next day, 
and the day after, and every day Elsa begged 
her father to let her go with the bear. She 
loved her home, and she did not like to leave 


her parents and her brothers and sisters; but 
8 113 


she knew that they were hungry and in need 
of clothes. So she was willing to go away for 
their sake. | 

The next week, therefore, when the white bear 
came again to ask for the youngest daughter, 
her father said that she might go. Elsa bade 
good-by to all the family, and went. Just 
outside the house the bear was waiting for her. 

“Get on my back,” said he, ‘‘and I will 
carry you.” 

Elsa climbed up and sat on his soft fur. 

When they had gone a short distance, the 
white bear said, ‘“‘Are you afraid?” 

“No,” replied Elsa. 

‘There is nothing to be afraid of,” said he. 
“Hold tightly to my fur so that you will not 
fall off.’ 

THE BEAR’S CASTLE 


When they had traveled for a long time, they 
came to a great hill with a door in the side of 
it. The bear rapped at the door and at once 
it was opened for him. ‘Then he went into the 
hill and Elsa jumped down from his back. 


The inside of the hill was like a great castle. 
114 


The rooms were bright with the light of many 
golden lamps. The furniture was costly; soft 
rugs covered the floor; and in the hall stood 
a table covered with good things to eat. 

‘This is your supper,” said the white bear to 
Elsa. ‘‘Here is a bell. If you want anything, 
ring the bell and you will have it at once.”’ 

Then he went away. 

When Elsa had finished her supper, it was 
late and she was sleepy. ‘So she rang the bell 
and immediately she was in a beautiful sleeping 
room. The bed was made of gold, and the 
covers and the pillows were of the finest silk. — 

When she had put out the light and gone 
to bed, some one came into the room and sat 
on a chair until morning. This made her afraid, 
and she did not sleep well. But in the morning 
no one was there. | 

The same thing happened night after night. 
All day long the white bear roamed about the 
castle and talked to Elsa, but when night came 
he went away. Then, when Elsa went to bed, 
some one came and sat on the chair in her room. 


She did not sleep at night and she was lonely 
| 115 


= 


in the daytime. At last, she looked so sad 
that the white bear asked her the cause of her 
orief. | 

“Tt is very lonely here,” said she. ‘I should 
like to visit my parents and my brothers and 
sisters.’’ 

“You may visit them if you: like,’ said the 
white bear. ‘But you must promise me not 
to talk to your mother when you are alone with 
her. She will take you by the hand to lead you 
into a room where she can speak to you alone; 
but you must not go with her. If you do, you 
will make both of us very unhappy.”’ 

The next day, the white bear told Elsa that 
they were going to visit her parents. She sat 
on the bear’s back, and away they went at a 
terrible rate. At last, they came to a large 
white farm house. Here the bear stopped. 

‘This is where your parents are living now,” 
he said. ‘‘Now mind you do not forget what 
I told you. If you do, you will bring misfortune 
upon us.”’ 

‘Do not be afraid. I shall not forget,” re- 


plied Elsa. 
116 


Then she went into the house, and the white 
bear went away. 

Elsa’s parents and’ brothers and sisters were 
very glad to see her again. They said they 
did not know how to thank her enough for 
what she had done for them. They lived in a 
fine house now and had everything they wished. 

Then they asked her about herself. She told 
them that she was very comfortable and that 
she had everything she needed; but she did not 
tell them where she had been, or why she did not 
sleep at night. 

One day after dinner her mother took her 
by the hand and said that she wished to speak 
to her alone. Elsa did not wish to go; but her 
mother urged her, and at last she went. 

Then Elsa told her mother all that had hap- 
pened—that some one had come into her room 
every night as soon as she put out the light; 
but that she had never seen him because he had 
always gone away before morning. 

“Oh, dear me!”’ said her mother. “It may be 
a troll for all we know. I will tell you how you 


can find out. Hide this candle in your dress 
| 117 


and take it home with you. When he comes 
to your room again, wait until he is asleep. 
Then light the candle; but be sure the tallow 
does not drip on him.” 

Elsa promised to do as her mother had told 
«her; and at night the white bear came and 
carried her away. 

THE CANDLE 

When night came and Elsa had gone to bed, 
some one came as usual and sat on the chair 
in her room. She waited until he was asleep 
and then she lighted the candle. 

There on the chair was the loveliest prince 
she had ever seen. As she leaned over to see 
him better, three drops of tallow fell on his 
coat, and he awoke. 

“What have you done?’ said he. ‘‘ You have 
made both of us unhappy for ever. If you had 
been faithful for a year, I should have been 
saved from an ugly witch who changes me into 
a white bear every day. Now I must go back 
to the Castle East of the Sun and West of the 
Moon and marry a princess with a nose as long 


as my arm.” 
118 


Elsa began to cry, but that did no good. 
The prince said he must leave her. 

“May I go with you?” asked Elsa. 

“No, you may not,” said the prince. 

‘Where are you going?”’ asked she. 

“Tt is east of the sun and west of the moon,” 
replied the prince; ‘‘but you can not find the 
way.” 

When Elsa awoke the next morning both the 
prince and the castle were gone. She was lying 
on the green grass in a great field, and she 
was dressed in the same old clothes she had 
worn when she first went away from home. She 
cried until her eyes were red; then she got up 
and went to find the prince. After she had 
walked for many days, she met an old woman 
who was playing with a golden apple. 

‘Can you tell me the way to the Castle East 
of the Sun and West of the Moon?” asked Elsa. 

SiNo, [ can not,’ said the woman: - “But l 
will lend you my horse, and you can ride to my 
neighbor. Perhaps she can tell you. When you 
come to her, tell my horse to go home again. 


You had better take this golden apple with you.” 
119 


Elsa rode the horse until she met an old woman 
who was carding wool with a golden comb. 
‘Can you tell me the way to the Castle East of 
the Sun and West of the Moon,” she asked 
again. 

‘“T do not know the way,” said the woman. 
“But you can ride on my horse until you come 
to my neighbor. Maybe she can tell you. You 
' had better take this golden comb with you.” 

So Elsa rode the horse until she met an old 
woman who was spinning with a golden spin- 
ning wheel. She asked her, too, if she knew the 
way to the Castle East of the Sun and West of 
the Moon. 

‘No, Ido not know the way,” said the woman. 
“But I will lend you my horse and you can 
ride to the east wind and ask him. Perhaps 
he knows the way. He blows almost every- 
where. I will give you my golden spinning wheel 
to take with you.” 

Then Elsa rode for many days until she came 
to the east wind. ‘Do you know the way to 
the Castle East of the Sun and West of the 


Moon?” she asked him. 
120 


) 


‘“‘T have heard of it,’’ said he; ‘‘but I have 
never blown as far as that. If you like, I will 
go with you to my brother, the west wind. — 
Perhaps he can take you there. He is much 
stronger than I am. Sit on my back and I 
will take you to him.”’ 

When they came to the west wind, the east 
wind said, ‘‘ Brother West Wind, can you tell 
Elsa the way to the Castle East of the Sun and 
West of the Moon?”’ 

‘No, I can not,” said the west wind; ‘“‘but I 
will take her to the south wind. Maybe he 
can tell her the way.” 

The west wind and Elsa went along at a 
terrible rate. When they came to the south 
wind, the west wind said, ‘‘Brother, can you 
tell me the way to the Castle East of the Sun and 
West of the Moon?”’. 

‘“T have been in many a nook and corner,” 
said the south wind, ‘‘but I have never been 
there. If the maiden wishes, I will go with 
her to my brother, the north wind. He is the 
oldest and the strongest of all of us. If he 


does not know where the castle is, no one will 
121 


ever be able to tell you. Sit on my back, fair 
maid, and IJ will carry you to him.” 

So the south wind carried Elsa to the north 
wind. ‘The north wind was very wild and fierce, 
and when they were still a long way off, he called 
out, ‘‘Who are you? Where are you going? What 
do you want?” 

‘Oh, you needn’t be so fierce,’ said the south 
wind. “It is only your brother and a poor 
lass who wants to find the Castle East of the 
Sun and West of the Moon.” 

‘“T know where it is,” said the north wind. 
‘“‘T once blew an aspen leaf there; but I was so 
tired that I was not able to blow for many days 
afterwards. However, if the lass wishes to go 
there, I will see if I can blow her so far.”’ 

Elsa thanked the north wind and climbed 
upon his back, and away they went. As they 
went along, great storms rushed over the land 
and the sea. Houses and trees were blown down 
and ships were carried beneath the waves. 

The north wind became more and more weary. 
At last, he could hardly fly; he had just strength 


enough to set Elsa down on the seashore a short 
122 


distance from the castle. Indeed, he was so 
tired that he had to rest for many days before 
he could fly home again. 


THE CASTLE 


Next morning, Elsa sat under the window of 


the castle and began to play with the golden 
123 


apple. Soon the princess with the long nose 
opened the window. 

“For how much will you sell your golden 
apple?”’ she asked. 

“You may have it, if I may sit in the room 
where the prince sleeps to-night,’’ replied Elsa. 

‘Very well,’’ said the princess. 

So Elsa went to the prince’s room after he 
had gone to sleep. She tried to speak to him; 
but he slept so soundly she could not wake him. 

The next day she again sat under the castle 
window and began to play with her golden comb. 
Soon the princess with the long nose again opened 
the window. 

‘For how much will you sell your golden 
comb?”’ she asked. | 

“You may have it,” replied Elsa, “‘if I may 
sit in the room where the prince sleeps to-night.” 

“Very well,’ said the princess. 

So Elsa again went to the prince’s room after 
he had gone to sleep. She tried to speak to him; 
but he slept so soundly that she could not 
wake him. 


The next day Elsa sat once more under the 
124 


palace window and began to spin on her golden 
spinning wheel. And once more the princess 
with the long nose opened the window. 

“For how much will you sell your golden spin- 
ning wheel?” she asked. \, 

“You may have it,” replied Elsa, “if I may 
sit in the room where the prince sleeps to-night.”’ 

“Very well,” said the princess. a 

But that day some poor prisoners, who had 
been. locked in the next room, told the prince 
that on the last night and the night before a 
young girl had come to his room and had tried 
to waken him. 

When night came, therefore, the prince pre- 
tended to go to sleep; but he was wide awake. 
Soon the princess with the long nose brought 
Elsa to the room and left her there. The prince 
spoke to her, and she told him all she had done 
to find him. 

“Tt is lucky you have come,” said the prince; 
“for to-morrow I was to marry the princess 
with the long nose. In the morning I shall 
ask her to wash off the three drops of tallow 


that you dropped on my clothes. Then I shall 
125 


ask the trolls who are here to try to wash them 
off. They will not be able to do it, for it can 
be done only by human hands. At last, I shall 
ask you to wash out the spots. So, good night. 
Do not fail to come back in the morning.” 

The next morning, the prince said, “‘I must 
ask my bride to wash these three spots off my 
clothes.’”? Then the princess with the long nose 
tried to wash out the spots; but they only be- 
came blacker than ever. Then the trolls tried; 
but they could not wash off the spots. Then 
Elsa tried; and the prince’s clothes became as 
white as snow. 

The old witch who had changed the prince 
into a bear, was so angry- that she burst. I 
think the princess with the long nose must have 
burst, too; and the trolls must have burst, for 
I never heard of them afterwards. 

Then the prince set free all the folks whom 
the witch had locked up in the castle. The next 
day, he married Elsa, and ever since that time 
they have lived in the Castle East of the Sun 
and West of the Moon. 


—Peter C. Asbjornsen. 
126 


THE MOUNTAIN AND THE SQUIRREL 


The mountain and the squirrel 
Had a quarrel, 

And the former called the latter ‘‘little prig’’; 
Bun replied, 

“You are doubtless very big, 

But all sorts of things and weather 
Must be taken in together 

To make up a year, 

And a sphere, 

And I think it no disgrace 

To occupy my place. 


If I’m not so large as you, 

You are not so small as I, 

And not half so spry. 

I’ll not deny you make 

A very pretty squirrel track. 

Talents differ, all is well and wisely put. 
If I cannot carry forests on my back, 


Neither can you crack a nut.” 
—Ralph Waldo Emerson. 


127 


HOW THE BRAMBLE BUSH BECAME 
KING 


Once upon a time the trees set out to find 
some one to be their king. 

They went to the olive tree, and said, ‘“‘Olive 
tree, come and be our king.” 

But the olive tree said, ‘‘Why should I go 
to be your king? My Maker sent me here to 
bear my olives. I can not leave my task to be 
your king.”’ 

Then the trees went to the palm tree, and said, 
‘Palm tree, come and be our king.” 

But the palm tree said, ‘‘Why should I go 
to be your king? My Maker sent me here to 
bear my dates. I can not leave my task to be 
your king.”’ 

Then the trees went to the apple tree, and 
said, ‘Apple tree, come and be our king.” 

But the apple tree said, “‘Why should I go 
to be your king? My Maker sent me here to 
bear my apples. I can not leave my task to 
be your king.”’ 

Then the trees went to the vine, and said, 


‘Vine, come and be our king.” 
128 


But the vine said, ‘“Why should I go to be 
your king? My Maker sent me here to bear 
my grapes. I can not leave my task to be your 
king.” 

Then the trees went to the bramble bush, and 
said, “‘Bramble bush, come and be our king.” 

And the bramble bush said, ‘‘I bear no fruit. 
I have no task to leave. So I may as well be 
your king.” 

Then the trees made the bramble bush their 
king. 


9 129 


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WINTER NIGHT 


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130 


There’s a bedroom in a tree 
Where, snug as snug can be, 
The squirrel nests in his cozy bed. 


Shriek, wind, shriek! 
Make the branches creak! 

Battle with the boughs till break o’ day! 
In a snow cave, warm and tight, 
Through the icy winter night 

The rabbit sleeps the peaceful hours away. 


Call, wind, call! 
In entry and in hall! 
Straight from off the mountain, white and wild! 
Soft purrs the pussy-cat 
On her little fluffy mat, 
And beside her nestles close her furry child. 


Scold, wind, scold! 
So bitter and so bold! 
Shake the windows with your tap, tap, tap! 
With half-shut, dreamy eyes 
The drowsy baby hes 


Cuddled closely in his mother’s lap. 


—Mary F. Butts. 
131 


THE BOASTING BAMBOO 


In far-away Japan there is a high mountain 
called Mount Fujiyama. On its sides are great 
forests, and in one of these forests there were 
once two bamboos that grew side by side. 

One of them was tall and sturdy and held 
its head high above all the other trees in the 
forest. No wind that blew in summer or in 
winter was able to make the great tree bow be- 
foreit; and this made it very proud and haughty. 

Close beside the great tree grew another bam- 
boo that was very different from its proud com- 
panion. It was small and slender, and swayed 
with every wind that blew. The sad thing about 
it was that it did not like to be small and weak. 
It wished to be big and strong like the other 
tree. 

On warm summer days children often came 
to the forest to play. They never once played 
under the great bamboo, but always chose the 
pleasant shade of the little tree. 

‘This is our tree,’ said the children. ‘‘It’s 


name is Fairy Queen.’ 
132 


They made garlands of flowers and hung them 
on the lower branches of the tree. All day long 
they played there, while the birds sat in the 
swaying branches overhead and sang to them; 
but when the shadows began to lengthen, they 
hurried back to their homes. 

One evening after the children had gone away, 
the great bamboo said, ‘‘Little bamboo, you 
are only good for the children to play with. 
I am big and strong. Some day I shall be the 
mast of a great ship. Then I shall sail far 
over the ocean and see all the cities of the world. 
You are good for nothing. You will never be 
big like me. When I am far away on the great 
sea, I shall think of you and pity you.” 

The little bamboo thought this was all very 
kind of the great bamboo; but her heart was 
so sad she could not speak. She only rustled 
her leaves and hung her head in shame. 

One day, wood-cutters came to the forest with 
their saws and axes. 

“Yonder bamboo will make a fine mast for 
a junk,” said one of them, as he pointed to 


the great tree. ‘‘Let us cut that first.” 
133 


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134 


So the mighty tree was cut down and carried 
to the seashore. 
~ When the wood-cutters returned to the forest, 
the children gathered around them and cried, 
‘‘Good wood-cutters, do not cut down the little 
bamboo. It is our friend. We call it Fairy 


Queen. It is our tree and we love it. Every 
day we come here to play, and we shall be very 
unhappy if you harm our little tree.”’ 


THE LITTLE TREE 

“You may keep your little tree,” said one 
of the wood-cutters, “if you will dig it up and 
plant it in your garden. Our master has or- 
dered us to cut down all the trees in this forest 
so that he may have rice-fields here; and your 
little tree will be cut down with the rest, unless 
you root it up and carry it away.” 

The wood-cutters were kind-hearted men. They 
even helped the children dig up the little bamboo 
so that its roots might not be broken; and in 
a sunny garden beside the sea, they planted 
their Fairy Queen. 

Then a strange thing happened. In the great 


forest the little tree had been surrounded by 
135 


) 


larger companions and it did not receive enough 
sunshine or rain to make it grow. But in the 
pleasant garden it was far away from all 
‘other trees, and every drop of rain watered its 
roots, and the sun kissed its leaves from morning 
till night. 

As the days went by, the little tree grew 
and grew, and at last it became large and beauti- 
ful; but it was never as tall or as strong as the 
boasting bamboo that had once stood beside it 
in the forest. The children loved the little bam- 
boo as well as ever, and it was very happy. 

One day there was. a terrible storm. The 
wind blew in mighty blasts, and the waves beat 
upon the shore and frightened the children so 
much that they ran home in terror. The little 
bamboo was frightened, too. It bowed before 
the wind until its top almost touched the ground; 
but the trunk did not break and the roots held 
fast. | 

Soon there was a great crash, and the broken 
mast of a junk was cast up on the shore almost 
at the foot of the little tree. She looked down 


in surprise and saw that it was the boasting 
136 


bamboo that had been her companion in the 
‘forest. 

“Oh! how sorry I am!” said Fairy Queen. 
“Can I do anything for you?”’ 

‘No, thank you; no one can do anything for 
menow,’’ replied themast. ‘Ihave been crushed 
by the waves. -How foolish I was to boast be- 
cause I was so large! I should have been much 
happier if I had been a beautiful little tree like 
you, with the children to love me.” 

When the mast had said this, she sighed and 
ceased to speak. 

Next day, wood-cutters came with their axes 
and cut the mast into firewood. ‘The children 
came to watch them as they worked, and they 
picked up the chips, made believe they were 
boats, and tossed them upon the water. They 
did not know that this was the great bam- 
boo under which they had once played in the 
forest. Only Fairy Queen knew that, but she 
said nothing. And that was the end of the 


boasting bamboo. 
—Japanese Myth. 


137 


THE MEASURE OF RICE 


There was once a king who had an officer 
called the price maker. The duty of the price 
maker was to set the price for everything that 
the king bought from his subjects. 

The king was dishonest; but the price maker 
was honest. He made the king pay fair prices 
for all he bought; so the king did not like him. 

One day, the king met a poor stupid beggar 
and asked him if he would like to be the price 
maker. The beggar said that he would will- 
ingly take the office; so the king sent the honest 
price maker away. _ 

Now, the new price maker did not know the 
value of money; so, of course, he did not know 
how much to pay for the things that the king 
wanted to buy. Some of the prices he made 
were very amusing. 

One day, a farmer came to sell the king five 
hundred horses for his army. The king asked 
the price maker what the horses were worth, 
and all the people listened to hear. 


“Five hundred horses are worth a measure of 
138 


rice,’ said the price maker; while all the people 
laughed. 

But the king gave the farmer a measure of 
rice and sent the horses away to his stable. 

The poor farmer did not know what to do. 
The horses were worth enough to make him 
rich, yet he had received only a measure of rice 
for them. He went to one of his friends and 
asked him what he should do. 

The farmer’s friend replied, ‘‘Go to the price 
maker and say, ‘If five hundred horses are worth 
a measure of rice, what is a measure of rice 
worth?’”’ 

The farmer did as his friend bade him. When 
he came to the price maker, he said: ‘“ What 
are five hundred horses worth?”’ 

‘““A measure of rice,” replied the price maker. 

“Very well,’ said the farmer. ‘‘ Now tell me 
what a measure of rice is worth?” 

‘What is a measure of rice worth? What is a 
measure of rice worth?’’ muttered the price maker, 
as he tried very hard to think. At last he 
answered, ‘‘Oh, a measure of rice is worth——.” 


What do you think it was? Iam sure you 
| 139 


140 


could never guess. It was such a funny answer 
that the farmer laughed and asked the price 
maker to go with him to the king. . 

The price maker consented to do this; and 
when they came to the king, the farmer said, 
‘““O King, to-day I have learned that five hundred 
horses are worth a measure of rice. Now I 
wish to ask a favor. Will the price maker tell 
me what a measure of rice 1s worth?”’ 

“Certainly,”’ replied the king, who did not sus- 
pect what the farmer was trying todo. Then 
he turned to the price maker and said, “‘ What 
is a measure of rice worth?” 

‘““A measure of rice,’’ replied the price maker, 
as all the people listened to hear, “is worth the 
whole city.”’ 

When the people heard this, they laughed, and 
the king was so angry that he drove the stupid 
price maker away. ‘Then he sent for the honest 
price maker and paid the farmer a fair price for 


his horses. 
—RHindu Tale. 


141 


THE MERCHANT OF SERI 

In the city of Seri there was a merchant who 
went about the streets selling pots and pans. 
Some of his wares were made of tin and some of 
brass, and as he went along, he called out, 
“Who will buy my pots? Who will buy my 
pans? Who will buy my brass? Who will buy 
my tins?”’ 

The merchant of Seri was honest and all the 
people liked to buy of him. 

One day, a merchant from another city came 
to sell pots and pans in Seri. He called out, 
‘‘Buy my pots! Buy my pans!” and the people 
hurried to their doors and windows to see what 
he had to sell. 

In a little tumbled-down house lived an old 
woman and her granddaughter. Once they had 
been rich, but now they were very poor. When 
the little girl heard the merchant calling, she 
ran to the window and looked out. 

“OQ grandma,” she said, ‘‘please ask the mer- 
chant to give us a new bowl for the old one on 
the kitchen shelf.’’ 


It was a golden bowl, but neither the grand- 
142 


mother nor the little girl knew it. It was the 
only thing the grandmother had saved from 
the days when her husband was a rich merchant, 
and she had kept it because he had liked to 
eat his rice from it. 

‘The merchant will not give us anything for 
the old bowl,’’ replied the grandmother; ‘‘ 
we have nothing else to trade with him.” 

‘Come, grandma, let us ask him, anyway,” 
insisted the little girl. So the grandmother took 
down the bowl and followed her granddaughter 
into the street. 

“Will you give my little girl a dish for this 
old bowl?”’ she asked. 

The merchant took the bowl in his hands and 
scratched it with a knife. He saw that it was 
made of gold; but he was dishonest and thought 
he would be able to get it for nothing. So he 
threw it on the ground. ‘This old bowl is 
worthless,” he said. “I cannot give you any- 
thing for it.”’ 

He went on his way, while the poor old grand- 
mother picked up the bowl and carried it back 
into the house. 


and 


143 


Soon the Merchant of Seri came through the 
street selling his wares. When the little girl 
heard him calling, she said, “‘Look, grandma, 
here is the Merchant of Seri. Perhaps he will 


give us something in exchange for the bowl.” 
144 


Again the grandmother took the bowl and 
carried it to the merchant. He examined it 
carefully while a smile spread over his face. 

‘This 1s a golden bowl,” said he. ‘‘All my 
wealth is not enough to purchase it. I will give 
you my bags of gold. I will give you all my 
wares of brass and tin. Only give me the bowl 
in exchange and I shall be richer than you.”’ 

The exchange was soon made and the grand- 
mother and the little girl rejoiced at their good 
fortune. 

In a little while, the dishonest merchant came 
back and rapped at the cottage door. 

““T will give you something for the old bowl,” 
said he. 

“You tried to deceive us,’’ replied the grand- 
mother, ‘‘and now you are too late. It was a 
golden bowl and we have sold it to another 
merchant.”’ | 

So the good Merchant of Seri had the bowl, 
‘which he sold for a great price; and the grand- 
mother and the little girl had enough money to 


supply their wants as long as they lived. 
—Hindu Tale. 
10 145 


: wae Wes 


CHICKADEE 


Then piped a tiny voice hard by, 

Gay and polite, a cheerful cry, 
“‘Chick-a-dee-dee!”? saucy note 

Out of sound heart and merry throat . 
As if it said, ‘‘Good day, good sir! 

Fine afternoon, old passenger! 

Happy to meet you in these places 


Where January brings few faces.” 


—Ralph Waldo Emerson. 
146 


THE WIND 


I saw you toss the kites on high, 
And blow the birds about the sky, 
And all around I heard you pass, 
Like ladies’ skirts across the grass— 
O wind, a-blowing all day long; 
O wind, that sings so loud a song! 


I saw the different things you did, 
But always you yourself you hid; 
I felt you push, I heard you call, 
I could not see yourself at all— 
O wind, a-blowing all day long; 
O wind, that sings so loud a song! 


O you that are so strong and cold, 
O blower, are you young or old? 
Are you a beast of field and tree, 
- Or just a stronger child than me? 
O wind, a-blowing all day long; 
O wind, that sings so loud a song! 
—Robert Louis Stevenson, — 


147 


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THE EYES IN THE PEACOCK’S TAIL 


Jupiter and Juno were king and queen of the 
gods. ‘They lived in a gilded palace on the top 
of Mount Olympus. , 

At the foot of the mountain flowed a beautiful 
river, which from the mountain looked like a 
thread of silver in the valley below. 

On the bank of the river lived the maiden Io. 
Jupiter often went down to the shiny river to 
talk to Io. This made Juno very angry. 

One morning, therefore, she went down into 
the valley to see what Io was doing; but when 
she came to.the river there was no maiden to 
be seen. There was only a white cow eating the 
dewy grass. 

Juno guessed that Jupiter had changed Io 
into a cow to deceive her. So she sent Argus 
to watch the white cow. Argus had one hun- 
dred eyes, and Juno thought that all of them 
could never fall asleep at once. Sometimes the 
two eyes of a watchman fall asleep; but if two 
of the eyes of Argus fell asleep, he would still 


have ninety-eight eyes with which to watch. 
149 


Never for a moment did Argus take his eyes 
off the cow. All day long he watched her feed 
by the river, and at night he tied a rope around 
her neck and fastened her to a tree. 

Io was very uncomfortable because the hun- 
dred eyes were always gazing at her. Jupiter 
pitied her so much that at last he sent Mercury 
to set her free. Now, Mercury had been made 
the messenger of the gods because he traveled 
so quickly. He very soon came to the beautiful 
river and sat down near the place where Argus 
was watching Io. 

While he sat there, Mercury began to play 
softly upon his lyre, and soon the mighty head 
of Argus began to nod and his eyes began to 
grow dim. At last, all of the eyes were closed 
in sleep.’ Then Mercury drew his sword and 
slew the sleeping monster, and Jupiter came 
and changed Io back into a maiden. 

Juno was so angry at what Mercury had 
done that she put the eyes of Argus in the tail 
of her peacock, and there they remain to this 
day. 

—Greek Myth. 
150 


HOW A THISTLE SAVED SCOTLAND 


The Scots were brave and free. They lived 
in their island home where their fathers had 
lived before them. They had fields of grain 
in the valleys and flocks of sheep and herds of 
cattle feeding on the rugged hillsides. 

At last, Northmen, who lived across the sea, 
came to rob and plunder the country. The 
brave Scots collected an army and drove the 
invaders away many times; but they always 


came back again. 
151 


Then came a time when the Northmen landed 
on the Scottish shores at night. The armed 
Scots were encamped near by; but believing 
that their enemies were far away across the sea, 
they were fast asleep. 

Just before daybreak, the daring robbers began 
to steal up the hill to surprise the sleeping army. 
At that same instant the sun peeped over the 
hilltop and saw the danger to the Scots. It 
shone in the eyes of the sleeping men and tried 
to waken them; but they slept as soundly as 
before. Then the morning breeze awoke and 
blew on the faces of the warriors; but it could 
not waken them. 

Silently the Northmen advanced, until they 
had almost reached the slumbering Scots. Then 
one of them stepped on a thistle with his bare 
foot, and his cry of pain aroused the sleepers. 
They sprang to their feet shouting, ‘The North- 
men are coming! The Northmen are coming!” 

They soon drove the robbers back to their 
ships; and since that time the Scots have al- 
ways loved the thistle. 

—Scottesh Legend. 


152 


THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH 


Ponce de Leon, or lion, was born in the city 


of Leon, in Spain, in the year 1460. From 
153 


his earliest years he was fond of adventure and 
longed to be a soldier. 

* When he was very young, he was made a 
page in the home of a nobleman, where he was 
taught obedience and good manners. He was 
trained to hunt with the hawk and to use his 
sword to protect himself. 

As soon as Ponce was old enough to join the 
army, he fought in the wars against the Moors. 
These Moors were Moslems, who had come from 
Africa to fight against the Christians in Spain. 

When Columbus returned to Spain after the 
discovery of America, Ponce was thrilled with 
the account of the voyage. So when Columbus 
started on his second voyage in 1493, Ponce 
was one of those who went with him. 

Ponce remained in America as governor of 
one of the islands that had been. discovered. 
Later, he conquered the Indians of Porto Rico 
and became its first governor. 

Years passed by and Ponce began to realize 
that he was growing old. Like many other 
men, he wished to be young again. 


The people of Europe believed that somewhere 
154 


in India there was a magical fountain whose 
waters would make the old young again; and 
since every one thought that the land Columbus 
had discovered was India, Ponce built two ships 
and set out to find the fountain of youth. 

After sailing for a few days, he reached the 
continent of North America. It was Easter morn- 
ing, and as that day is called Pascue Florida 
in Spanish, Ponce named the country Florida. 

He was welcomed by the Indians and journeyed 
far and wide, bathing in all the springs and 
rivers that he saw. 

But in spite of his efforts, his youth was not 
renewed, and Ponce sadly returned to Porto 
Rico, where he lived for many years. 

When he had grown to be a very old man, he 
sailed to Florida again; but this time the In- 
dians were unfriendly and drove him back to 
his ship. Sailing to Cuba, he soon died in 
sorrow and disappointment. On his tombstone 
is written: ‘‘In this grave rest the bones of a 
‘man who was a lion by name and still more by 


nature.” 
—Adapted from Washington Irving. 


155 


WHERE GO THE BOATS? 


Dark brown is the river, 
Golden is the sand. 

It flows along for ever, 
With trees on either hand. 


Green leaves a-floating, 
Castles of the foam, 

Boats of mine a-boating— 
Where will all come home? 


On goes the river 
And out past the mill, 
Away down the valley, 
Away down the hill. 


Away down the river, 

A hundred miles or more, 
Other little children 

Shall bring my boats ashore. 


—Robert Louis Stevenson- 


156 


THE LITTLE TIN SOLDIER 


There were once five and twenty tin soldiers 
who were brothers, for they had all been made 
from the same old tin spoon. They were very 
grand in their new red and blue uniforms, as 
they shouldered their guns and looked straight 
before them. 

The first thing the soldiers ever heard were 
the words, ‘“‘Tin Soldiers!’’ shouted by a little 
boy, who clapped his hands with delight when 
the lid was taken off the box in which they lived. 

It was the little boy’s birthday, and the soldiers 
had been given to him for a birthday present. 
The little boy took the soldiers out of the box, 
and stood them on the table. They were exactly 
alike, except one, who had only one leg. He was 
the last one to be made, and there had not been 
enough tin to finish him; but he stood as firmly 
on one leg as the others did on two. 

There were many other playthings on the table 
where the soldiers stood; but the most attractive 
one was a pretty little paper castle. The windows 
were very tiny, but still one could look through 


them and see the inside of the rooms. In front 
157 


of the castle stood little trees around a piece 
of looking-glass, which looked like a lake of 
clear water. Beautiful little wax swans were 
swimming about the lake and were reflected on 
its glassy surface. 

This was all very pretty; but the prettiest 
thing of all was a tiny little lady, who stood at 
the open door of the castle. She also was made 
of paper; but her dress was of the thinnest 
muslin, with a narrow blue ribbon like a scarf 
over her shoulders. At the middle of the ribbon 
was a shining tinsel rose as big as her whole 
face. 

The little lady stretched out both her arms, 
for she was a dancer, and she raised one foot so 
high that the tin soldier could not see it at all, 
and thought that she also had but one leg. 

‘She would make a fine wife for me,’’ said the 
soldier; ‘“‘only she is so grand and lives in a 
castle, while I have only a box to livein. Besides, 
there are five-and-twenty of us in the box, and 
there is no room for her. Still I must try to . 
become acquainted with her.”’ 


Then he lay down at full length behind the 
158 


snuff-box, where he could watch the dainty little 
lady, who still stood on one leg without losing 
her balance. 

When evening came, the tin soldiers were put 
into the box—that is, all of them except the 
soldier with one leg, who was left standing on 
the table—and the people of the house went 
to bed. Then the toys began to play and have 
jolly times on the table. The tin soldiers rattled 
in their box, for they wanted to get out and play 
with the others; but they could not lift the lid. 
The nut-cracker turned somersets, and the pencil 
Jumped about the table. They made so much 
noise that the canary woke up and began to 
sing in the middle of the night. Only the tin 
soldier and the dancer remained in their places. 
She stretched out both her arms and stood on 
tiptoe as firmly as he did on his one leg. He 
never turned his eyes from her, even for a single 
moment. 


THE GOBLIN 


The clock struck twelve. Up flew the lid of 


the snuff-box, but there was no snuff in it; for 
159 


it was not a real snuff-box, but only the house 
of a goblin named Jack-in-the-Box. 

The goblin looked very fierce and said, “Tin 
soldier, keep your eyes to yourself.” 


The tin soldier pretended not to hear him, 
160 


and that made the goblin very angry. He 
snapped his teeth and said, ‘‘Only wait till to- 
morrow! Then you’ll see!”’ 

The next morning, the children put the tin 
soldier in the window. No one knows whether 
it was the goblin or the wind that did it, but 
it is certain that the soldier fell from the third 
story window to the street below. It was a 
terrible fall. He landed on his head, and his 
bayonet wedged in between some stones and 
held him there with his one leg straight up in 
the air. 

The maid and the little boy went downstairs 
to look for him; but, although they nearly 
stepped upon him they could not find him. If: 
the soldier had called out, “‘Here I am!” they 
would have found him; but he did not care to 
call for help, because he was a soldier. 

Then it began to rain. The drops fell faster 
and faster until there was a regular shower. 
When the shower was over, two boys who were 
idling about the street happened to pass by. 

“Look, ” said one of them, “here is a tin 


soldier. He ought to have a boat to sit in.” 
i R 161 


THE BOAT 

So they made a boat from a newspaper, and 
stood the tin soldier in it and sent him sailing 
down the gutter. Then the two boys ran along 
beside him clapping their hands. The waves 
were very high and the current was very strong. 
The paper boat rocked up and down, and it 
sometimes turned around so quickly that the 
soldier trembled; but he remained at his post. 
He shouldered his musket and looked straight 
before him. 

All at once, the boat shot into a long drain, 
where it was as dark as it was in the box where 
the other tin soldiers lived. 

“Where am I going now?” thought he. ‘‘This 
must surely be the goblin’s fault. Oh! if only 
the little lady were here with me in the boat, I 
should not care how dark it was.” 

A. huge water-rat that lived under the bridge 
soon made his appearance. 

“Have you a passport?” asked the rat; but 
the tin soldier remained silent and held his 
musket tighter than ever. 


The boat flew past and the rat followed. How 
162 


he gnashed his teeth and called out to the wood 
shavings and the straw. ‘‘Stop him! stop him! 
he has not paid his toll or shown his passport.”’ 

The stream bore the tin soldier on more rapidly 
than ever, and he could already see daylight 
where the drain ended. ‘Then he heard a rush- 
ing sound that was enough to frighten the bravest 
man. At the end of the drain the water fell 
into a canal; this was as dangerous for his tiny 
craft as going over a waterfall would be for a 
boat. 

The little paper boat dashed on, but the soldier 
stood as firmly as he could, to show that he was 
not afraid. The boat whirled around three or 
four times until it was filled with water. Then 
it began to sink. ‘The tin soldier stood up to 
his neck in water, while the boat sank deeper 
and deeper. Soon the water closed over his 
head. He thought of the pretty little dancer 
whom he should never see again, and he was 
very sad. | 

Then the paper boat became soft and was 
torn to pieces. ‘he soldier dropped down deeper 


into the water, but was instantly swallowed by 
163 


a huge fish. 

Oh, how dark it was inside the fish! It was 
even darker than it was in the drain, and there 
was no room for. him to move; but the tin 
soldier kept his courage and lay at full length 
with his gun on his shoulder. 


The fish swam about, making the most fear- 
164 


ful movements, but at last it became quite still. 
Then a flash of lightning seemed to dart through 
him. Daylight appeared, and a voice called 
out, ‘‘As I am alive, the tin soldier!’’ The fish 
had been caught, taken to the market and sold 
to the cook, who took him to the kitchen and 
cut him open with a large knife. She picked 
up the soldier, held him by the waist between 
her thumb and finger, and carried him into 
another room where everybody was surprised 
to see this wonderful soldier who had traveled 
about inside a fish. But he was not at all 
proud. 

They put him on the table. What curious 
things happen in the world! The soldier was in 
the very same room in which he had been before. 
He saw the same children, and the same toys 
stood on the table; and there was the same 
castle with the pretty little dancer. She was 
still standing on one foot and holding up the 
other. She was as firm and as faithful as he 
was. Hewasalmost moved to tears. He looked 
at her and she looked at him; but they said 


nothing. 
165 


‘Then one of the little boys took up the tin 
soldier and threw him into the stove. He gave 
no reason for doing this, so it must have been 
the fault of the goblin. 

The flames gathered around him and the heat 
was terrible; but he could not tell whether the 
heat came from the fire or from love. His bright 
red and blue colors were gone, but whether that 
had happened on his travels or had been caused 
by sorrow, no one could say. He looked at the 
little lady and she looked at him. He felt him- 
self melting away, but still he stood there with 
his gun on his shoulder. 

Suddenly the door of the room opened, and 
the wind caught up the dancer and whirled her 
right into the stove beside the tin soldier. In- 
stantly, she was caught up by the flames and 
was gone. The tin soldier melted down to a 
lump, and the next morning when the maid 
took out the ashes, she found him in the shape 
of a little tin heart. Nothing remained of the 
dancer but the tinsel rose, and that was burned 


as black as a coal. 
—Hans Christian Andersen. 


166 


THE JUMBLIES 


They went to sea in a sieve, they did; 
In a sieve they went to sea; 
In spite of all their friends could say, 
On a winter’s morn, on a stormy day, 
In a sieve they went to sea. 
Far and few, far and few, 
Are the lands where the Jumblies live: 
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue 
And they went to sea in a Sieve. 


They sailed away in a sieve, they did, 
In a sieve they sailed so fast, 
With only a beautiful pea-green veil 
Tied with a ribbon, by way of a sail, 
To a small tobacco-pipe mast. 
And every one said who saw them go, 
“Oh! won’t they be soon upset, you know? 
For the sky is dark, and the voyage is long; 


And happen what may, it’s extremely wrong 
In a sieve to sail so fast.” 


They sailed to the Western Sea, they did— 


To a land all covered with trees; 
167 


Se, 


168 


And they bought an owl and a useful cart, 
And a pound of rice and a cranberry-tart, 
And a hive of silver bees; 
And they bought a pig, and some green jackdaws, 
And a lovely monkey with lollipop paws, 
And forty bottles of ring-bo-ree, 
And no end of Stilton cheese. 


And in twenty years they all came back— 
In twenty years or more; 
And every one said, ‘‘ How tall they’ve grown! 
For they’ve been to the Lakes and the Torrible 
Zone, 
And the hills of the Chankly Bore.”’ 
And they drank their health and gave them a 
feast 
Of dumplings made of beautiful yeast; 
And every one said, ‘‘If we only live, 
We, too, will go to sea in a sieve, 
To the hills of the Chankly Bore.” 
Far and few, far and few, 
Are the lands where the Jumblies live; 
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue 


And they went to sea in a sieve. 
—Edward Lear. 
169 


PINOCCHIO 
THE STORY OF A MARIONETTE 

Once upon a time there was a piece of wood. 
It was not worth much. It was only a piece of 
firewood like those that we burn in winter in 
the stove or in the fireplace to warm the rooms. 

I cannot say how it happened; but one fine 
day an old carpenter found this piece of wood 
in his shop. The name of the carpenter was 
Master Antonio, but almost everybody called 
him Master Cherry because the end of his nose 
was almost as red as a ripe cherry. 

When Master Cherry saw the piece of wood, , 
he was pleased. He rubbed his hands together. 
with delight, and said softly to himself, 

“This wood has come just at the right time. 
I will use it to make a leg for the table.”’ 

As soon as he had said this, he took a sharp 
axe to cut away the bark. But before he could 
strike the first blow, he stopped with the axe held 
high in the air. He had heard a small voice 
say, ‘‘Do not strike me so hard!”’ 

Master Cherry was very much surprised. He 


turned his eyes all around the room to see where 
170 


the little voice came from. He looked under the 
bench. He looked in the cupboard. He looked 
in the basket of shavings. He even opened the 
ydoor of the shop and looked into the street; 
but no one could he see. 
At last Master Cherry laughed and began to 
scratch his head. 

“T see how it all is,”’-he said. ‘‘I only imag- 
ined I heard some one speak.” 

Again he took up the axe, and this time he 
struck the piece of wood a terrible blow. 

“Oh! you have hurt me!”’ cried the same 
little voice. 

Master Cherry stood as still as if he had 
turned to stone. His eyes started out of his 
head with fright. His mouth remained open, 
and his tongue hung down almost to the edge 
of his chin. 

He was trembling with fear, but as soon as 
he was able to speak, he said, ‘‘Where on earth 
did that little voice come from? ‘There is no one 
here. Is it possible this piece of wood has learned 
to ery and speak like a child? I cannot believe it. 


It is only a piece of firewood. If I threw it on 
171 


the fire, it would boil a pot of beans. Can 
anyone be hiding inside it? If anyone is hiding 
there, so much the worse for him. I will settle 
him at once.” 

As he said this, he took the poor piece of wood 
in his hands and began to beat it against the 
wall. 

Then he stopped to listen to see if he could 
hear the little voice. He waited two minutes. 
He waited five minutes. He waited ten min- 
utes. But he could hear nothing. 

‘“‘T see how it all is,’’ said he, as he tried to 
laugh and pushed his wig back into place. ‘‘I 
only imagined I heard some one speak.’’ 

But all the time he was much frightened, and 
he tried to sing to give himself a little courage. 

He put aside the axe and took his plane, but 
as soon as he began to smooth the wood, the 
little voice laughed and said, 

‘Stop! you are tickling me!”’ 

This time Master Cherry fell down as if he 
had been struck by lightning. At last, when 
he opened his eyes, he found himself sitting on 


the floor. His face was quite white, and the 
172 | 


end of his nose, instead of being red, had become 
blue from fright. 


MASTER CHERRY’S VISITOR 


At that moment some one knocked at the 
door. | 

‘“‘Come in,” said the carpenter; for he did not 
have the strength to rise to his feet. 

A little old man at once walked into the shop. 
His name was Gepetto, but some of the bad 
boys called him “Indian Pudding,’ because his 
yellow wig looked so much like a pudding. 

“Good day, Master Antonio,’ said Gepetto. 
‘What are you doing there on the floor?”’ 

“T am teaching the A-B-C’s to the ants,”’ 
said Antonio. ‘‘What can I do for you?” 

“T have come to ask a favor of you,” said 
Gepetto. 

“Well, here I am, ready to serve you,” replied 
the carpenter, as he rose to his knees. 

“This morning an idea came into my head,” 
said Gepetto. ‘I thought I would make a won- 
derful puppet or marionette that could run and 


jump. With it I could travel about the world 
173 


Sts 
Ss — > 


and earn a living.” 

“Good for you, Indian Pudding,’ shouted 
the same little voice that had frightened Antonio. 

Gepetto was very angry and said, ‘‘Why do 
you insult me?”’ 

“T did not insult you,” said Antonio. 

“Yes, you did,”’ said Gepetto. ‘I heard what 
you said, but I shall not quarrel with you. Give 
me a piece of wood so I can make my marionette, 
and I shall go home at once and not trouble 
you again.” 

Master Antonio was delighted. He went to 
the bench and got the piece of wood that had 
frightened him. But just as he was going to 
give it to his friend, the piece of wood jumped 
out of his hands and struck Gepetto a terrible 
blow upon the knees. 

“You have.a nice way of giving presents,”’ 
said Gepetto. ‘‘You have almost lamed me!” 

“T did not do it. It was the wood,” said 
Antonio. 

“T do not believe you,” said Gepetto, as he 
limped out of the door with the piece of wood in . 
his hand. 


175 


THE MARIONETTE 

Gepetto lived in a small room with one window. . 
The only furniture he had was an old chair, a 
bed, and a broken table. At one end of the 
room there was a fireplace in which a fire was 
burning; but the fire was only painted. Over 
the fire was a painted kettle that seemed to be 
boiling and sending out clouds of steam. 

As soon as he reached home, Gepetto took his 
tools and began to make his marionette. 

‘What name shall I give him?” he said to 
himself. ‘I think I shall call him Pinocchio. 
It is a name that will bring him luck. I once 
knew a whole family that was named Pinocchio. 
The father was named Pinocchio; the mother 
was named Pinocchio; and all the little children 
were named Pinocchio, also.”’ 

Having found a name for the marionette, he’ 
began to work in earnest. First he made the 
hair, then the forehead, and then the eyes. 

As soon as the eyes were finished, he was sur- 
prised to see them move and begin to stare at 
him. Soon he became angry. 


‘““Wooden eyes,” he said, ‘‘why do you stare 
176 


at me?”’ 

No one answered. 

Then he took his knife and made the nose; 
but as soon as he had finished it, it began to 
grow. It grew, and it grew until it seemed as if 
it never would stop growing. 

Gepetto cut it off, and cut it off, until he was 
tired; but it only grew longer and longer. 

Before he had finished the mouth, it began 
to laugh and make fun of him. 

“Stop laughing!”’ said Gepetto; but he might 
as well have spoken to the wall. 

“Stop laughing, I say!’’ he shouted in an 
anery voice. 

The mouth then stopped laughing, but stuck 
out its tongue as far as it would go. 

Gepetto pretended not to see this, and went 
on with his work. After the mouth was finished, 
he made the chin, then the throat, then the arms 
and the hands. 

As soon as he had made the hands, Gepetto 
felt his wig pulled off. He turned around, and 
what do you think he saw? He saw his yellow 


wig in the hands of the marionette. 
12 177 


ypu 


(i 


LJ 
G 


Past 


178 


“Pinocchio, give me back my wig!”’ he shouted. 

But instead of giving it back, Pinocchio put it 
on his own head, and was almost smothered by it. 

Pinocchio’s conduct made Gepetto feel very 
sad, and he dried a tear. 

‘You young rascal!’”’ he said. ‘‘You are not 
yet finished, and still you do not have respect 
for your father. You are a bad, bad boy!”’ 

Then he began to make the legs and the feet; 
but before they were finished, they began to kick 
him. 

“T deserve it,” he said to himself. ‘I should 
have thought of it before. Now it is too late.” 

Then he placed the marionette on the floor 
and began to teach him to walk. At first his 
legs were stiff, and he could not move. But 
Gepetto held him by the hand and showed him 
how to put one foot before the other. 


PINOCCHIO RUNS AWAY 
After a few moments, Pinocchio began to walk 
and then to run about the room. At last he 
jumped through the open door and ran down 


the street. 
179 


Gepetto ran after him, but he was not able 
to catch him. Pinocchio leaped like a rabbit. 
His wooden feet made more noise on the pave- 
ment than twenty pairs of heavy shoes. 

“Stop him! Stop him!” shouted Gepetto. 

But the people only stood still with wonder, 
as the marionette ran past them like a race- 
horse. They only laughed at Gepetto as he 
ran after him. 

At last, a soldier heard the noise and thought 
that a colt had escaped from his master. He 
placed himself in the middle of the road with his 
feet spread apart so that nothing could pass him. 

When Pinocchio saw him, he tried to escape 
him by passing .between his legs. But the sol- 
dier caught him by the nose and held him fast. 
It was a very large nose and just the size to be 
held by a soldier. 

As soon as the soldier put Pinocchio into the 
hands of Gepetto, the old man tried to punish 
the marionette by pulling his ears. But just 
think how surprised he was because he could 
not findthem. In his hurry to finish the marion- 


ette, he had forgotten to make the ears. 
180 


So he took him by the neck and led him 
away. As they went along Gepetto said, 

‘We will go home now and settle this affair.”’ 

But Pinocchio threw himself on the ground 
and would not take another step. Soon a crowd 
of idle persons gathered and made a ring about 
them. Some of them said one thing, and some 
another. | 

‘Poor marionette!”’ said several. ‘‘Heis right 
in not wishing to go home. Who knows how 
that bad old Gepetto will beat him!” 

Some one said, ‘‘Gepetto seems like a good 
man, but with boys he is very cruel. If that 
poor marionette is left in his hands, he will 
tear him in pieces.”’ 

So at last the soldier set Pinocchio free, and 
led Gepetto away to prison. The poor man, 
who had done nothing wrong, cried like a child. 
When he came to the prison, he said, 

“Wicked boy! And I tried so hard to make a 
good marionette! Butitservesmeright. Ishould 
have thought of it before.”’ 

What was done afterwards is a story that is 


very hard to believe; but I will tell it to you just 
181 


as it happened. 


THE TALKING CRICKET 


While poor Gepetto was being taken to prison 
for no fault of his, that imp Pinocchio, finding 
himself free from the hands of the soldier, ran 
off as fast as his legs could carry him. In 
order that he might reach home quicker, he ran 
across the fields. In his hurry, he jumped over 
banks, hedges, and ditches full of water, just as 
a wild animal would have done, if chased by 
hunters. 

When he came to the house, he found the 
door was not locked. So he opened it and went 
in. He threw himself on the floor to rest, but 
he quickly got up again. He heard some one 
in the room who was saying, ‘‘ Cri-cri-cri!”’ 

“Who calls me?” said Pinocchio in a fright. 

“Tt is I!’ said the voice. 

Pinocchio turned around and saw a big cricket 
crawling slowly up the wall. 

‘Tell me, Cricket, who may you be?” said he. 

“T am the talking cricket,” said the cricket, 


‘“and I have lived in this room for more than a 
182 


SDE 


oe 
rie 


phase 


| 


—_ 


fun 
| | 


hundred years.”’ 

‘It doesn’t matter how long you have lived 
here,’ said the marionette. ‘‘The room is mine 
now, and you will do me a favor by going away 
at once, without even turning around.”’ 

“T will not go away,”’ said the cricket, “‘until 
I have told you a great truth.’’ 

“Tell it to me, then,” said Pinocchio; ‘“‘and 
be quick about it.” 

“Woe to those boys who rebel against their 
parents, and run away from home,” said the 
cricket. ‘‘They will never have any good luck, 
and sooner or later, they will be very sorry.” 

“Sing away, little cricket, as long as you 
please,” said Pinocchio. ‘“‘But I have made up 
my mind to run away to-morrow morning as 
soon as it is light. IfI stay here, what happens 
to other boys will happen to me, also. I shall 
be sent to school and shall be made to study. 
To tell you the truth, I do not wish to study. 
It is much more amusing to run after butter- 
flies, and to climb trees and take the young 
birds out, of their nests.” | 


“Poor little goose!’’ said the cricket. ‘“‘Do 
184 


you not know that you will grow up to be a 
perfect donkey, and every one will make fun of 
you?”’ 

‘Hold your tongue, you wicked old cricket!’ 
shouted Pinocchio. 

But the cricket was not angry. It only said, 
‘But if you do not wish to go to school, why 
do you not learn a trade? Then you will be 
able to earn a piece of bread.”’ 

‘Do you want me to tell you?’’ replied Pinoc- 
chio. ‘‘ Well, I will tell you. Among all the 
trades in the world there is only one Bee I 
like.”’ 

‘And what is that?” asked the cricket. 

“Tt is to eat, drink, sleep, and amuse myself, 
and to lead an idle life from morning until 
night.” 

“As a rule,” said the talking cricket, ‘‘ those 
who follow that trade end in a hospital or in a 
prison.”’ : 

“Take care,” said Pinocchio, ‘‘or you will 
make me angry.” 

“Poor Pinocchio! how I pity oul said the 


cricket. 
185 


‘Why do you pity me?”’ said Pinocchio. 

‘‘Because you are a marionette,’’ said the 
cricket. ‘‘ And what is worse, you have a wooden 
head.” 

At these last words Pinocchio jumped up in a 
rage, and taking a wooden mallet from the 
bench, he threw it at the talking cricket. Per- 
haps he never meant to hit him; but unfor- 
tunately he struck him exactly on the head. 
The poor cricket had hardly breath to cry out 
“Cri-cri-cri,” before he was flattened against the 
wall. 


PINOCCHIO’S HUNGER 


Night was coming on, and Pinocchio remem- 
bered that he had eaten nothing all day. He 
began to feel a gnawing in his stomach that was 
very much like an appetite. In fact, his hunger 
grew so quickly that. he could hardly wait for 
something to eat. 

He ran to the fireplace, where a kettle was 
boiling. He was about to take off the lid to see 
what was in it, when he saw that the kettle was 


only painted on the wall. You can imagine 
; 186 


his feelings. His nose began to grow again, 
and became three inches longer. 

Then he began to run about the room. He 
looked in drawers and in every other place for a 
bit of bread. He thought there must be a crust 
of bread or a bone, but he could find nothing 
at all. 

And all the time his hunger grew and grew 
until he felt as if he should faint. At last, he 
began to cry. 

“The talking cricket was right,” he sobbed. 
‘It was wrong to disobey my father and run 
away from home. If he were here now, I should 
not be dying of hunger. Oh! what a dreadful 
thing hunger is!”’ 

Just then he thought he saw something on the 
floor. It was round and white and looked like 
a hen’s egg. He sprang to seize it. It was 
indeed an egg. 

Pinocchio was overjoyed. Thinking it was a 
dream, he kept turning the egg over in his hands. 
He felt it and kissed it again and again. 

‘Now how shall I cook it?” he said. ‘‘Shall 


Imake an omelet? Shall I fry it? Or, shall I boil 
187 


it? No, the quickest way of all is to cook it ina 
bowl of hot water. I am in such a hurry to 
eat it.” 

So he placed a bowl over the fire. Instead of 
oil or butter, he poured a little water into it. 
When the water began to boil, he broke the egg- 
shell over it, so that the egg might drop in. 
But instead of the yolk and the white, a little 
chicken hopped out. It was a very gay little 
chicken and it made Pinocchio a polite little 
bow. 

‘Many thanks, Master Pinocchio, for saving 
me the trouble of breaking the shell,’ it said. 
‘Good-by until we meet again. Keep well and 
give my best wishes to all at home.”’ 

As it said this, the chicken flew through the 
open window and was soon lost to sight. 

The poor marionette stood there staring out 
of the window. His mouth was open and the 
empty eggshell was in his hand. But as soon 
as his surprise was over, he began to cry and 
scream and stamp his feet on the floor. 

“Yes, the talking cricket was right,” he said, 


between his sobs. ‘‘If I had not run away from 
188 


home, and if my papa were here, I should not 
now be dying of hunger! What a terrible thing 
it is to be hungry!”’ 

The sight of food had made him more hungry 
than ever. So he thought he would leave the. 
house and go out to look for some one who would 
give him a piece of bread. 


PINOCCHIO LOSES HIS FEET 


It was a wild and stormy night. The thunder 
was terrible, and the lightning was so bright 
that the sky seemed on fire. A strong wind 
was blowing clouds of dust over the streets and 
making the trees creak as it passed. 

Pinocchio was afraid of thunder; but hunger 
was stronger than fear. So he closed the door 
and ran to the village. He ran so fast that he 
panted like a dog after a chase. 

But he found the village all dark and deserted. 
The shops were closed, the windows were shut, 
and there was not even a dog in the street. It 
seemed like the land of the dead. 

Pinocchio took hold of a doorbell and began 


to ring it with all his might. He said to him- 
189 


self, “That will bring somebody.” 

And so it did. A little old man with a night- 
cap on his head appeared at a window and called 
to him in an angry voice, 

“What do you want at such an hour of the 
night?” 

‘Would you be kind enough to give me a little 
bread?”’ said Pinocchio. 

“Wait there and I will come back directly,” 
said the little old man. 

He thought the marionette was one of the 
bad boys who ring doorbells at night to disturb 
people who are sleeping. 

In half a minute the window was opened again, 
and the voice of the little old man called to 
Pinocchio, ‘‘Come near the house and hold out 
your cap.” 

Pinocchio pulled off his cap; but just as he 
held it out a great basin of water was poured 
down on him. It wet him from head to foot 
as if he had been a pot of dried-up roses. 

Pinocchio went home like a wet chicken. He 
was tired and hungry, and so he sat down in front 


of the fireplace to dry his wet feet. 
e190 


And then he fell asleep; and while he was 
asleep, his feet, which were made of wood, took 
fire and were burned to cinders. Pinocchio slept 
on as if his feet belonged to some one else. 
At last, about daybreak, he awoke because some 
one was knocking at the door. 

‘“Who is there?’’ he asked, yawning and rub- 
bing his eyes. 

“Tt is I!’ answered a voice. 

And the voice was the voice of Gepetto. 


GEPETTO RETURNS HOME 


Poor Pinocchio, whose eyes were not half open 
yet, had not noticed that his feet were burned 
off. So as soon as he heard his father’s voice, 
he jumped up and started for the door; but 
after he had stumbled two or three times, he 
fell flat on the floor. ‘The noise he made in 
falling was like that of a bag of wood that had 
been thrown from a fifth story window. 

‘Open the door!’’ shouted Gepetto from the 
street. 

‘Dear papa, I cannot,’”’ said the marionette, 


as he eried and rolled about on the floor. 
191 


“Why can’t you?”’ asked Gepetto. 

‘“Because my feet have been eaten,’ said Pinoc- 
chio. 

‘“‘ And who has eaten your feet?’’ asked Gepetto. 

“The cat,’ said Pinocchio; for he saw her 
playing with some shavings, and thought she 
had eaten his feet. 

“Open the door, I tell you!” shouted Gepetto. 
“Tf you don’t, when I get into the house, I shall 
punish you.”’ 

‘“‘Believe me, father,’’ said Pinocchio, ‘‘I can- 
not walk. I shall have to walk on my knees 
for the rest of my life.” 

Gepetto thought the marionette was trying 
to deceive him, so he climbed up the side of the 
house and came in through the window. He 
was very angry; but when he saw Pinocchio 
lying on the floor without any feet, he felt very 
sorry for him. He took him up in his arms and 
kissed him, and said, ‘‘ My little Pinocchio, how 
did you happen to burn your feet?”’ 

“I don’t know, papa,’ said Pinocchio. “It 
was a terrible night. It thundered and light- 


ened. I was very hungry, and the talking cricket 
192 


) 


said to me, ‘It serves you right. You were 
bad and ran away from home.’ Then I said, 
‘Take care, Cricket;’ and he said, ‘You are a 
marionette and have a wooden head.’ So I 
threw the hammer at him and he died; but it 
was his fault for I did not wish to kill him. 

“Then I found an egg and tried to cook it; 
but a chicken flew out of the shell and said, 
‘Good-by until we meet again.’ I was so hungry 
that I went to the village to beg for something 
to eat; but an old man poured a basin of water 
on my head. So I came home and sat down 
before the fire to dry my feet. I must have 
fallen asleep, with my feet near the fire, for 
when I awoke, they were burned off. Now I 
am hungry.”’ 

Gepetto could not understand all that the 
marionette had told him, but he did understand 
that he was dying of hunger. So he took three 
pears from his pocket. 

“These three pears,” he said, “‘were to have 
been my breakfast; but I am glad to give them 
to you. Eat them. I hope they will do you 


- good.”’ 
13 193 


‘Tf you wish me to eat them,”’ said Pinocchio, 
‘be kind enough to peel them for me.”’ 

‘Peel them?” said Gepetto. ‘‘I am surprised 
to find you are so dainty. In this world you 
should accustom yourself to eat anything that 
is set before you.” | 

‘No doubt you are right,’ said Pinocchio; 
‘‘but I never eat fruit that has not been peeled.” 

So Gepetto found a knife and peeled the three 
pears. He put the skins on the corner of the 
table. 

Having eaten the first pear in two mouthfuls, 
Pinocchio was about to throw away the core; 
but Gepetto caught hold of his arm. 

“Do not throw it away,” he said. ‘In this 
world everything may be of some use.”’ 

‘‘But I have made up my mind that I shall 
never eat cores!”’ Pinocchio shouted angrily. 

But the three cores, instead of being thrown 
out of the window, were pine on the table with 
the skins. 

After he had eaten the three pears, Pinocchio 
yawned and said, ‘‘I am still hungry.” 


‘‘But, my boy, I have nothing more to give 
194 


, 


you,’ said Gepetto. ‘‘I have only the skins 
and the cores of the three pears.’ 

“Well, if there is nothing else,’’ said Pinoc- 
chio, “‘I will eat the skins.’’ 

When he began to eat the skins, he made a 
sour face; but one after another, he soon ate 
them all. Then he ate the cores. When he had 
eaten everything, he said, ‘‘ Now I feel better.’’ 
~ “You see I was right,’ said Gepetto, ‘when 
I said that we should not be too particular about 
what we eat. We never can tell what may hap- 
pen to us.” 


PINOCCHIO’S NEW FEET 


As soon as the marionette had satisfied his 
hunger, he began to cry because he wanted a 
new pair of feet. But to punish him for being 
bad, Gepetto allowed him to cry and complain 
for half a day. 

“Why should I make you new feet?’’ he said 
at last. ‘Perhaps you wish to run away from 
home again.”’ 

“T promise you,” said the marionette, sob- 


bing, ‘that I will always be a good boy.” 
195 


‘All boys promise that,’’ said Gepetto, ‘when 
they wish to get something.”’ 

“T promise you that I will go to school and 
study,’’ said Pinocchio. 

‘All boys repeat that same story, when they 
are trying to get something,” said Gepetto. 

“But I am not like other boys,”’ said Pinocchio. 
‘“‘T am better than all of them, and I always speak 
the truth. I promise you that I will learn a 
trade so that I shall be able to care for you in 
your old age.”’ 

Gepetto tried to look cross; but his eyes were 
full of tears and his heart was full of pity for the 
poor marionette. Without saying another word, 
he took his tools and two small pieces of wood 
and set to work. 

In less than an hour the feet were finished. 
They were as swift and graceful little feet as if 
they had been made by a great artist. 

Then Gepetto said to the marionette, ‘‘Shut 
your eyes and go to sleep!”’ 

So Pinocchio shut his eyes and pretended to 
go to sleep. While his eyes were shut, Gepetto 


fastened the feet on with a little glue. He did it 
196 


so well that one could not tell where the legs and 
the feet were joined. 

As soon as the marionette saw that he had 
feet, he jumped down from the table on which 
he had been lying. Then he leaped’ and capered 
about the room as if he had gone mad with 
delight. 

“To pay you for what you have done for 
me,’ said Pinocchio, ‘‘I will go to school at 
once.”’ 

‘“You are a good boy,” said Gepetto. 

“But if I go to school,” said Pinocchio, ‘‘I 
must have some clothes.”’ 

Gepetto was so poor that he did not have 
even as much as a penny in his pocket; but he 
made Pinocchio a suit of clothes from some 
wall-paper that was covered with pretty flowers. 
He also made him a cap of brown paper with a 
feather stuck in the side. 

There was no mirror in the house, and so 
Pinocchio ran to look at himself in a pail of 
water. He was so pleased with what he saw that 
he went about like a peacock. 


‘T look just like a gentleman,”’ he said. 
197 


X 


ry 


BITES 


198 


“Yes, indeed,” said Gepetto; ‘‘for bear in 
mind that fine clothes do not make a gentle- 
man, but clean clothes.”’ 

‘But,’ said the marionette, ‘“‘I am still in 
want of the most necessary thing to go to school.”’ 

“What is that?’”’ asked Gepetto. 

‘“A spelling book,” said the marionette. 

“You are right,” said Gepetto; ‘‘but how 
shall we get one?”’ 

“It is quite easy,” said Pinocchio. ‘‘ You 
have only to go to the book store and buy one.” 

“T have no money,” said Gepetto. ‘But 
walt a minute,” he added, as he put on his old 
coat and ran out of the house. 

He soon returned with a spelling book; but 
the old coat was gone. The poor man was in 
his shirt sleeves, and it was snowing. 

‘Where is your coat, papa?’’ asked Pinocchio. 

“T have sold it,” said Gepetto. 

‘Why did you sell it?”’ asked Pinocchio. 

“Because it made me too warm,” said his 
father. 

Pinocchio understood the answer. He threw 


his arms around Gepetto’s neck and kissed him. 
199 


PINOCCHIO SETS OUT FOR SCHOOL 


As soon as it stopped snowing, Pinocchio set 
out for school with his spelling book under his 
arm. 

“To-day I shall learn to read,’ he said to 
himself as he went along. ‘‘ To-morrow I shall 
learn to write; and the day after I shall learn 
to do problems. Then I shall be able to earn 
a great deal of money. With the money 
I shall buy my papa a new coat. It shall 
be made of gold and silver with diamonds 
for buttons. I ought to do this for him, 
because he sold his coat to buy me a spelling 
book.”’ 

- While he was saying this, he thought he heard 
music. It sounded like the noise of fifes and 
drums. He stopped to listen. 

‘Where can that music be?” said he to him- 
self. ‘‘What a pity that I have to go to school 
to-day!”’ 

He stood still for a few moments. He was 
trying to make up his mind what todo. Should 
he go to school, or should he go after the fifes? 


At last he decided. 
200 


‘To-day I shall go and hear the fifes,” he 
said to himself; ‘‘and to-morrow I shall go to 
school.” 

Then he ran on and came nearer to the sound 
of the fifes and the beating of the drum. Soon 
he found himself in the middle of a throng of 
people. They were trying to crowd into a small 
building that was painted in many bright colors. 

‘What is this place?”’ asked Pinocchio of a 
little boy who was standing beside him. 

“Read the sign, and then you will know,” 
said the boy. 

‘TI should be glad to read it,” said Pinocchio, 
“but I do not know how to read.” 

‘“Blockhead!”’ said the boy. ‘“‘Then I will 
read it for you. The sign says, 


‘GREAT MARIONETTE THEATER’”’ 


“Has the play begun?”’ asked Pinocchio. 

“Tt is beginning now,” said the boy. 

“How much does it cost to go in?” asked the 
marionette. 


201 


“Two cents,” said the boy. 

Pinocchio was very anxious to see the show. 

‘Will you be so kind as to lend me two ceuts 
until to-morrow?” he asked. 

‘‘T should be very glad to lend them to you,”’ 
said the boy; ‘‘but it happens that I cannot 
spare them to-day.”’ 

‘“‘T will sell you my coat for two cents, 
the marionette. | 

‘What do you think I could do with a paper 
coat?” said the boy. “If it rained, I could not 
get it off my back.”’ 

Pinocchio felt very sad. Then he said, *‘ Will 
you give me two cents for my new spelling book?” 

“T am a boy and I don’t buy from boys,”’ 
was the reply. 

‘“‘T will buy the spelling book for two cents,” 
called out a man who bought old clothes. He 
had heard what the two boys said, and thought 
this was a rare bargain. 

So the book was sold then and there. And 
to think that poor Gepetto was at home shiver- 
ing with the cold because he had sold his coat 


to buy the spelling book! 
202 


) 


said 


PINOCCHIO GOES TO THE SHOW 

When Pinocchio went into the theater, some- 
thing happened that almost ended the show. 

Harlequin and Punchinello were on the stage, 
and all the people were laughing at the funny 
things they did. But as soon as Pinocchio en- 
tered, Harlequin stopped short and pointed his 
finger at him. 

“Do I dream or am I awake?” he cried. 
‘Surely that is Pinocchio!” 

‘‘It is indeed Pinocchio!”’ cried Punchinello. 

“Tt is Pinocchio! It is Pinocchio!”’ shouted 
all the marionettes at once, as they ran on to 
the stage from all sides. ‘“‘It is Pinocchio! 
It is our brother Pinocchio! Long live Pinoc- 
chio!”’ 

‘‘Pinocchio, come up here,’ cried Harlequin, 
‘“‘and throw your arms around your wooden 
brothers!”’ 

At this invitation, Pinocchio made a leap 
from the floor. Another leap landed him on 
the head of the leader of the band, and from 
there he sprang upon the stage. 


The embraces, the hugs, and the kisses that 
203 


\ 


(i 
2 


6) 


yy! i 


Pinocchio received from the other marionettes 
stopped the whole show. At last the people 
grew tired of waiting. 

“Go on with the play! Go on with the play!” 
they shouted. 

But it was all breath thrown away; for the 
marionettes put Pinocchio upon their shoulders 
and carried him about the stage. 

Just at that moment out came the showman. 
He was so big and so ugly that the sight of him 
was enough to frighten any one. His beard was 
as black as ink, and so long that it reached 
from his chin to the ground. I need only to 
say that he stepped upon it when he walked. 
His mouth was big and his eyes were like two 
lanterns with lights burning in them; and in 
his hand he carried a big whip that he cracked 
as he walked about. | 

As soon as he came in, there was silence. No 
one dared to breathe. You could have heard a 
pin drop. The poor marionettes trembled like 
so many leaves. | 

‘““Why have you come to stop the play?” 


he asked of Pinocchio in a gruff voice. 
205 


‘“Believe me, it was not my fault,’’ said Pinoc- 
chio. 

‘“Do not say another word,” said the show- 
man. ‘‘To-night we will settle this matter.” 

As soon as the play was over, the showman 
went into the kitchen, where a fine sheep was 
roasting for his supper. There was not enough 
wood to roast it, so he called Harlequin and 
Punchinello to him. 

‘Bring that marionette here,” he commanded. 
“You will find him hanging on a nail. He 
seems to be made of dry wood. If he is thrown 
on the fire, he will make a fine blaze for the 
roast.”’ 

At first Harlequin and Punchinello did not 
move; but the showman looked at them so 
severely that they left the room. In a short 
time, they returned carrying poor Pinocchio. He 
was wiggling like an eel out of water, and scream- 
ing at the top of his voice. ‘Papa! papa! save 
me!”’ he cried. ‘I will not die! I will not die!”’ 

The showman was named Fire-eater, and he 
looked like a terrible man. His black beard 


covered his chest and legs like an apron; but he 
206 


did not have a bad heart. Indeed, when he saw 
Pinocchio struggling and screaming, ‘‘I will not 
die! I will not die!” he was sorry for him. 

“Are your papa and mamma still alive?” 
he asked. 

“Yes, my papa is,’ said Pinocchio; ‘‘but I 
never had any mamma.” 


FIRE-EATER PARDONS PINOCCHIO 


“Poor old man! I pity him,”’ said Fire-eater. 
‘Who can say how sorry he would be if I should 
throw you among those burning coals! So I 
shall pardon you. To-night I shall have to 
eat my mutton half-cooked; but the next time 
you fall into my hands beware.” 

The next morning, Fire-eater called Pinocchio 
to him. 

“What is your father’s name?” he asked. 

‘‘Gepetto,’”’ said Pinocchio. 

‘What is his trade?”’ asked Fire-eater. 

“He is a beggar,” said Pinocchio. 

‘Does he get much money?”’ asked the show- 
man. : 


‘No,’ said Pinocchio. ‘‘ Henever has a penny 
207 


in his pocket. He had to sell the only coat he 
had to buy a spelling book so that I could 
go to school.” 

‘Poor fellow!’’ said Fire-eater. ‘‘I feel sorry 
for him. Here are five gold pieces. Go at once 
and take them to him.” 

Pinocchio thanked the showman a thousand 
times. ‘Then he said good-by to the marionettes 
and set out for home. 


THE FOX AND THE CAT 


He had not gone far when he met a fox lame 
in one foot, and a cat blind in both eyes. The 
fox, because he was lame, was leaning on the 
cat, and the cat, because she was blind, was led 
by the fox. 

“Good day, Pinocchio,” said the fox in a very 
friendly way. 

‘How do you happen to know my name?”’ 
asked the marionette. 

“Oh, I know your father well,’”’ said the fox. 

‘Where did you see him?” asked Pinocchio. 

‘“T saw him yesterday at the door of his house,” 


said the fox. ‘‘He had no coat and he was 
208 


shivering with the cold.” 

‘Poor papa!”’ said Pinocchio; ‘“‘but that will 
soon be over. He shall shiver no more.” 

“Why?” asked the fox. 

“Because I have become a gentleman,” said 
Pinocchio. | 

“You have become a gentleman?” said the 
fox with a rude laugh. 

The cat also began to laugh, but she combed 
her whiskers with her paws and Pinocchio did 
not see her. 

“There 1s nothing to laugh at,” said Pinoc- 
chio. 

Then he took out the money that Fire-eater 
had given to him. 

“You can see for yourselves that here are 
five gold pieces,”’ he said. 

As the money rang in his hand, the fox put 
out the paw that had been lame, and the cat 
opened her eyes, which looked like two green 
lanterns; but she shut them so quickly that 
Pinocchio did not see her. 

“And now,” said the fox, ‘‘what will you do 


with all this money?” 
14 209 


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‘“ First of all,” replied the marionette, ‘‘I shall 
buy a new coat for my papa. Then I shall buy 
a spelling book for myself.” 

‘For yourself?”’ said the fox. 

‘Yes, indeed,” said Pinocchio. ‘‘I intend to 
go to school and study.”’ 

‘‘Look at me,’ said the fox. ‘‘Because I 
wished to study, I have lost a leg.”’ 


“Look at me,” said the cat. ‘‘Because I 
wished to study, I have lost the sight of both 
my eyes.”’ 


.At that moment, a blackbird that sat in the 
hedge beside the road began to sing. 

“Pinocchio,” he said, ‘‘do not listen to what 
bad companions tell you. If you do, you will 
be sorry.” 

Poor blackbird!. It would have been well for 
him if he had not spoken; for the cat sprang 
upon him and ate him in one mouthful. 

“Poor blackbird!”’ said Pinocchio. ‘Why did 
you treat him so badly?”’ 

‘‘T did it to teach him a lesson,’’ said the cat. 
‘He will learn not to meddle in the affairs of 


other people.”’ 
211 


When they had gone a little farther, the fox 
stopped and said to Pinocchio, ‘‘Would you 
like to double your money?”’ 

‘‘In what way?’ asked Pinocchio. 

‘Would you like to turn your five gold pieces 
into a hundred or a thousand?” asked the fox. 

‘fT think so,” said Pinocchio; ‘‘but in what 
way?” 

‘‘The way is easy,” said the fox. ‘Instead 
of going home, you must go with us to the 
Land of the Owls.” 

Pinocchio thought a moment. 

“No,” he said, “I will not go with you. 1! 
will go home to my papa. Who knows how 
badly he felt yesterday when I did not come 
back! I was a bad boy, and the talking cricket 
was right when he said, ‘Woe to those boys 
who disobey their parents and run away from 
home.’ Only yesterday, I almost lost my life 
in Fire-eater’s house.”’ 

‘Well, go home then,” said the fox; “and 
so much the worse for you.”’ 

‘“Yes, so much the worse for you,” said the 


Cat: 
212 


‘‘ Between to-day and to-morrow your five gold 
pieces would become a thousand,”’ said the fox. 

“How could they become so many?” asked 
Pinocchio. 

“T will tell you,” said the fox. ‘In the Land 
of the Owls, there is a place called the Field of 
Wonders. If you plant one gold piece in that 
field and water it with two pails of water, it 
will begin to grow. Then you must go to bed 
and sleep until morning. The next day you 
will find a beautiful tree with as many gold 
pieces on it as there are leaves on a cherry tree.”’ 

When Pinocchio heard this, he forgot all about 
his papa and the new coat. He also forgot 
about the spelling book and the school. He said 
to the fox and the cat, ‘‘Come let us start at 
once. I will go with you.” 


THE GRAY GOOSE INN 


Pinocchio and his companions walked and 
walked until they came to the Gray Goose Inn. 
“Tt is almost night,’ said the fox, “‘and we 
are very tired. Let us stop to eat and rest 


ourselves for an hour or two. We will start 
213 


again at midnight, so that we may reach the 
Field of Wonders to-morrow morning.” 

So they went into the inn and ordered their 
supper. 

The cat ate nothing but fish. The fox ate a 
rabbit and some fat chickens. Pinocchio ate 
the least of all. He ordered some walnuts and 
a piece of bread, but he left them on his plate. 
He could think of nothing but the Field of Won- 
ders and the gold pieces. 

After supper, the three companions went to 
bed. The cat and the fox slept in one room and 
Pinocchio in another. They told the inn-keeper 
to call them at midnight, so they could go on 
their journey. 

Pinocchio soon fell asleep and dreamed that 
he was in a field full of trees that were covered 
with gold pieces. He was just about to reach 
out his hand and pick them, when he was awak- 
ened by a knocking on the door of his room. 

It was the inn-keeper, who had come to tell 
him that the clock had struck midnight. 

‘Are the others ready?’’ asked the marionette. 


“Ready!” said the inn-keeper.. ‘‘They left 
214 | 


two hours ago.” 

‘Why were they in such a hurry?’ asked 
Pinocchio. | 

‘Because the cat heard that her oldest kitten 
had frozen its feet and was in danger of death,” 
said the inn-keeper. 

‘Did they pay for their supper?’’ asked Pinoc- 
chio. 

“Certainly not!’’ said the inn-keeper. ‘They 
would not think of hurting your feelings by 
paying for it.” 

‘“And where did my friends say they would 
wait for me?’’ asked the marionette. 

“They will meet you at the Field of Wonders 
to-morrow morning,” said the inn-keeper. 

So Pinocchio paid a gold piece for his supper 
and that of his friends. Then he set out. It 
was so dark he could not see the road, and he 
stumbled along without knowing where he was 
going. Some night-birds flew across the road 
and brushed Pinocchio’s nose with their wings 
as they passed. They frightened him so much 
that he called out, ‘‘Who goes there? Who goes 


there? ”’ 
215 


After he had walked a little farther, he saw a 
small insect that was shining dimly on the trunk 
of a tree. It looked like a night-lamp. 

“Who are you?” he asked. 

‘“‘T am the ghost of the talking cricket,’ said 
a very weak and faint voice. 

‘What do you want?” asked Pinocchio. 

‘““T want to give you some advice,” said the 
voice. ‘“‘Go back and take the four gold pieces 
to your poor father, who is very sad because you 
did not come back.” 

‘By to-morrow my papa will be a gentleman,” 
said Pinocchio. ‘‘These four gold pieces will 
then be four thousand.” 

‘My boy, do not believe those who promise 
to make you rich in a day. ‘They are sure to 
be rogues. Listen to me and go back,” said 
the voice. | 

‘No, I shall not go back,” said Pinocchio. 
“‘T have made up my mind to go on.” 

‘The hour is late,” said the voice. 

‘‘T have decided to go on,”’ said he. 

‘The night is dark,” said the voice. 


‘“T have decided to go on,”’ said he. 
216 


‘The road is dangerous,” said the voice. 

‘T have decided to go on,”’ said he. 

“Remember that boys who will have their own 
way, sooner or later are sorry for it,’ said the 
voice. ‘‘Good night, Pinocchio; and may you 
be saved from the assassins.”’ 

As soon as the talking cricket had said this, 
it became dark, as if the ight had been blown 
out; and the road was darker than ever. 


THE ASSASSINS 


As the marionette went on his way, he said, 
“Boys ought to be pitied. Everybody scolds 
us and tries to tell us what to do. The talking 
cricket tells me I am to meet assassins. But 
that doesn’t matter, for I don’t believe in assas- 
sins. I have never believed in them. I think 
our papas make up stories about them to scare 
little boys who wish to go out at night. If I 
should meet assassins on this road, do you think 
they would frighten me? Not the least in the 
world. I should go to meet them and say, 
‘Assassins, what do you want of me? Remember 


there is no joking with me! So go on about your 
217 


business!’ When I had said this, I think they 
would run away like the wind. However, if 
they did not have sense enough to run away, 
then I should run away myself. And that would 
be an end of it.” 

Pinocchio had hardly time to finish saying all 
this to himself when he heard a slight rustle of 
leaves behind him. He turned to look and dimly 
saw two objects wrapped in black cloaks. They 
were running after him, at full speed. 

‘Here they are now,” he said to himself. 

He did not know where to hide his gold 
pleces, so he put them in his mouth and held 
them under his tongue. 

Then he tried to escape. But he had not 
gone a Step before he was seized by the arms and 
heard two awful voices say to him, ‘‘ Your money 
or your life!”’ 

Pinocchio could not speak because the money 
was in his mouth, but he gave several low bows 
by way of saying, ‘“‘I have not a penny in my 
pocket.”’ 

‘“Come now! Let us have no nonsense,”’ said 


the robbers. 
218 


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‘Give up your money or you shall die,” said 
the taller of them. 

‘‘ After we have killed you, we will kill your 
father,’ said: the other. q 

‘No, no; not my poor papa!’ cried Pinoc- © 
chio. As he said this, the gold pieces rattled 
in his mouth. 

‘“O you rascal!’ said the taller of the robbers. 
“You have hidden the money in your mouth. 
Take it out at once!”’ 

Then the shorter assassin drew out an ugly 
knife and tried to force it between Pinocchio’s 
lips. But Pinocchio, as quick as lightning, bit 
off his hand and let it fall to the ground. Just 
think how surprised he was then to see that it 
was not a hand at all, but-the paw of a cat. 

Then Pinocchio freed himself from the assas- 
sins. He jumped over the hedge and began to 
run through the fields. They ran after him 
like two dogs chasing a rabbit. The one who 
had lost a paw, ran on three legs; but I do not 
know how he managed to run so well. 

After a race of several miles, Pinocchio could 


run no further. So he climbed up the trunk 
220 


of a very tall pine-tree and seated himself on 
the topmost branch. The assassins tried to 
climb after him; but after they had gone up 
half way, they slid down again, tearing the skin 
from their hands and knees. 

Then the assassins gathered some dry wood, 
piled it under the pine-tree and set fire to it. In 
less time than it takes to tell it, the tree began 
to burn like a candle. Pinocchio saw the flames 
come nearer, and as he did not wish to be roasted, 
he jumped from the top of the tree and started to 
run across the fields. ‘The assassins ran after 
him without stopping once. 

When day began to dawn, they were still 
following him. Soon, Pinocchio came to a wide 
ditch full of dirty water. What was he to do? 
‘One, two, three,” cried he, and leaped to the 
other side. 

The assassins also jumped, but—splash, splash! 

they fell into the middle of the ditch. 

Pinocchio heard the splash and shouted back, 
‘A fine bath to you, assassins!” 

He thought they would be drowned; but when 


he looked back, he saw they were both running 
221 


after him. They still wore their black cloaks, 
and the water was dripping from them, as if 
they had been hollow baskets. 


PINOCCHIO HUNG ON THE BIG OAK 


Pinocchio’s courage at last failed him, and 
he was about to give himself up for lost; but 
all at once he saw not far away a small house as 
white as snow. 

‘“‘Tf I can only reach that house,” he said to 
himself, ‘‘maybe I shall be saved.”’ 

He soon reached the house and knocked at 
the door. 

No one answered. 

He knocked again and again with great force, 
for there was no time to lose. He could already 
hear the steps and heavy breathing of the assas- 
sins. Still no one answered. 

Seeing that it was useless to knock, Pinocchio 
began to kick the door with all his might. The 
window opened, and a beautiful fairy appeared 
at it. She had blue hair and a face as white as 
snow. But her eyes were closed and she did 


not see him. He was about to speak; but before 
222 


he could open his mouth, he felt himself seized 
by the collar, while the horrible voices of the 
assassins said to him, ‘‘ You shall not escape 
from us again!”’ 

When the marionette saw death staring him 
in the face, he trembled so much that his wooden 
legs creaked and the gold pieces once more rat- 
tled in his mouth. 

“Now then,” said the assassins, ‘‘will you 
open your mouth, or not? Will you not answer? 
This time we shall force you to open it.” 

Then they drew out two long knives and tried 
to stab Pinocchio. But the marionette was made 
of very hard wood, and the knives were broken 
into a thousand pieces. | 

“T know what we shall do,’’ said one of them. 
‘Let us hang him.”’ 

“Yes, let us hang him,” said the other. 

So they tied Pinocchio’s arms behind him, 
and hung him to the branch of a tree called the 
big oak. 

Then they sat down on the grass and waited 
for him to die. But at the end of three hours 


the marionette’s eyes were open, his mouth was 
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At last, they’were out of patience. So they 
said to Pinocchio, ‘‘Good-by till to-morrow. 
Let us hope that you will be kind enough to die 
with your mouth open.” 

Then they went away. 

Little by little, the marionette’s eyes began to 
grow dim; but he still hoped that some one 
would come to save him. At last, his breath 
began to fail him. He shut his eyes, opened 
his mouth, and hung as if he were dead. 

PINOCCHIO IS SAVED BY THE FAIRY WITH 

BLUE HAIR 
While Pinocchio was hanging to the branch 
of the big oak, the beautiful fairy with blue 
hair looked out of the window and saw him. 
She felt so sorry for him that she sent a great 
dog to rescue him and bring him to her. 
_ As soon as the dog returned with Pinocchio, 

the fairy took him up in her arms and laid him 
gently ona bed. Then she sent for three famous 
doctors. 

The doctors came at once. One was a crow, 


one was an owl, and one was a talking cricket. 
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“Doctors,” said the fairy, ‘‘I wish to know 
if this marionette is alive or dead.”’ 

When she had said this, the crow felt Pinoc- 
chio’s pulse. Then he felt his nose. Then he 
felt of his toes. When he had done this, he 
said, “I think the marionette is quite dead. 
If he is not dead, it is a sign that he is still alive.” 

“T regret,’”’ said the owl, ‘“‘that I cannot agree 
with the crow. In my opinion, the marionette 
is still alive; but if he is not alive, it is a sign that 
he is dead.”’ 
~ “And have you nothing to say?” the fairy 
asked of the talking cricket. 

‘In my opinion,”’ said the cricket, “‘the wisest 
thing for a doctor to do, when he does not know 
what he is talking about, is to be silent. This 
marionette has a face that is not new to me. I 
have known him for some time.”’ 

Up to this time, Pinocchio had been lying 
as still as if he were dead. Now he began to 
tremble so much that he shook the bed. 

‘That marionette there,” added the talking 
cricket, ‘is a rogue.”’ 


Pinocchio opened his eyes, but shut them again 
227 


at once. 

‘He is a good-for-nothing run-away.” 

Pinocchio hid his face under the covers. 

‘That marionette is a bad boy who will make 
his poor father die of a broken heart.’’ 

All at once sounds of sobbing and crying 
were heard under the covers. 

‘When a dead person cries, it is a sign that 
he will get well,’ said the crow. 

‘“‘T do not like to disagree with you,” said the 
owl; “‘but when a dead person cries, it is a 
sign that he is sorry to die.” 


PINOCCHIO REFUSES THE MEDICINE 


When the three doctors had gone, the fairy 
placed her hand on Pinocchio’s head and found 
it so hot that she knew he had a fever. Then 
she poured some medicine into half a glass of 
water and offered it to the marionette. 

‘Drink it,” she said, “‘and in a few days you 
will be cured.” 

Pinocchio looked at the glass and drew up his 
face. 


“Ts it sweet or bitter?’’ he asked. 
228 


“It is bitter,” said the fairy; ‘‘but it will do 
you good.” | 

“Tf it is bitter, I will not take it,” said he. 

‘Drink it,” said the fairy; ‘‘and when you 
drink it, I will give you a lump of sugar to 
take away the taste.” | 

‘Where is the lump of sugar?” asked Pinoc- 
chio. 

‘Here it is,” said the fairy, as she took a 
piece from the sugar-bowl. 

‘Give me the lump of sugar first,”’ said Pinoc- 
chio. ‘Then I will drink the medicine.” 

So the fairy gave him the sugar and he swal- 
lowed it in an instant. 

‘Now keep your promise, and take the medi- 
cine,’ said the fairy. 

Pinocchio took up the glass and smelled of the 
medicine. ‘Then he put it down again. 

‘“‘It is too bitter,’ he complained. “I can- 
not drink it.”’ 

“How can you say that,’ asked the fairy, 
‘when you have not even tasted it?’’y 

“T know it from the smell,’’ said Pinocchio. 


Then he added, ‘‘I would rather die than drink 
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that bitter medicine.” 

Just then, the door opened and four black 
rabbits entered. They were carrying a couch 
that was tied to some long poles. 

Pinocchio was so frightened that he sat up in 
bed. 

“What do you want?” he demanded. 

“We have come for you,” said the largest 
rabbit. 

“To take me?” asked Pinocchio. ‘‘But I am 
not dead yet.” 

‘No, not yet,’ said the rabbit; ‘‘but you 
have only a few minutes to live. You have re- 
fused the medicine that would have cured you.”’ 

“QO Fairy, Fairy!’’ screamed the marionette. 
‘“Give me the medicine! Give me the medicine! 
I will not die! I will not die!”’ 

So taking the glass in his hands, he swallowed 
the medicine at once; and when he turned around, 
the rabbits had gone. 

A marionette 1s made of wood, and is sel- 
dom ill, and can be cured very quickly; so in 
a few minutes Pinocchio became well and jumped 


down from the bed. 
231 


When the fairy saw him running and caper- 
ing about the room, she said, ‘Then my medi- 
cine must have done you good.” 

“Well, I should think so,” said Pinocchio. 
‘It has saved my life.” 

“Then why did you have to be coaxed to take 
it?’’ asked the fairy. 

“Tt is this way,’ said Pinocchio. ‘‘We boys 
are more afraid of medicine than of being ill.” 

‘That is disgraceful!’’ said the fairy. ‘‘ Boys 
ought to know that a good remedy will save 
them from illness and, perhaps, from death.” 

‘‘ Another time,” said Pinocchio, ‘‘I shall not 
require so much coaxing. I shall remember 
those black rabbits, and shall take the medi- 
cine at once.” 

Then Pinocchio told the fairy all that had 
happened to him since he left his home. He 
told her about Fire-eater, about the fox and the 
cat, and about the assassins. Then he thanked 
her for having saved him from a terrible death 
on the old oak tree, and he said he should always 


love her for being so kind to him. 
| —C. Collodi. 
232 


THE WONDERFUL ADVENTURES 
OF NILS 


Nils was a boy about twelve years old, long, 
loose-jointed, and tow-headed. He was not good 
for much. His chief delight was to eat and sleep, 
and after that, he liked best to make mischief. 

One Sunday morning the boy’s parents were 
getting ready to go to church. The boy thought 
how lucky it was that both father and mother 
were going away, so that the coast would be clear 
for a couple of hours. 

But just as his father was ready to start, he 
stopped short, turned toward the boy and said: 

‘Since you won’t come to church with mother 
and me, the least you can do is to read the 
lesson at home. Will you promise to do so?”’ 

“Yes,” said the boy, ‘‘I can do that easily 
enough.” 

He thought, of course, that he wouldn’t read 
any more than he felt like reading. 

Then the father and the mother went to church. 
As the boy stood in the doorway watching them, 
he thought he had been caught in a trap. 


“There they go,’”’ said he to himself, “‘think- 
233 


ing that I’ll have to sit and read that sermon 
the whole time they are away.” 

The boy stood for a long time wondering 
whether he should read the sermon or not. 
Finally he came to the conclusion that it was best 
to be obedient. He seated himself in the easy 
chair and began to read, but when he had been 
reading for a little while, he began to nod. 

The boy read and nodded and tried to keep 
awake. “‘ No, Idon’t want to fall asleep,” thought 
he, “‘for then I’ll not get through with this.” 

But somehow he fell asleep. 

He did not know whether he had slept a little 
while or a long while; but he was awakened by 
hearing a slight noise behind him. 

On the window-sill, facing the boy, stood a 
small looking-glass; and almost the entire cot- 
tage could be seen in it. As the boy raised his 
head, he happened to look in the glass; and then 
he saw that his mother’s chest had been opened. 

His mother owned a great oaken chest, which 
she permitted no one but herself to open. Here 
she kept all the things her mother had left her. 


Here lay two old-fashioned dresses of red cloth. 
234 


There were starched white caps and heavy silver 
ornaments and chains. Several times his mother 
had thought of getting rid of the old things, but 
she hadn’t had the heart to do it. 

Now the boy could see in the mirror that 
the chest lid was open. He could not under- 
stand how this had happened, for his mother 
had closed the chest before she went away. She 
never would have left that precious chest open 
when he was at home alone. 

He was afraid a thief had sneaked into the 
cottage. He didn’t dare to move, but sat still 
and stared into the mirror. 

While he sat there and waited for the thief to 
appear, he began to wonder what that dark 
shadow was that fell across the edge of the chest. 
He looked and looked, for he could not believe 
his eyes. At last he saw that it was an elf who 
sat on the edge of the chest. 


THE ELF 
The boy had heard stories about elves, but He 
had never dreamed that they were such tiny 
creatures. This one who sat on the edge of 


the chest was no taller than a hand’s breadth. 
235 


He had an old wrinkled face, and was dressed 
in a black coat, knee-breeches and a _ broad- 
brimmed black hat. He was looking at some- 
thing in the chest and did not know the boy had 
awakened. 

The boy was somewhat surprised to see the 
elf, but he was not very much frightened. It 
was impossible to be afraid of one who was so 
little. Since the elf was so lost in thought, the 
boy thought it would be great fun to play a trick 
on him, and push him into the chest and close 
the lid. | 

But the boy was not brave enough to touch 
the elf with his hands. He looked around the 
room for something to poke him with. His 
eyes wandered from the sofa to the table and 
from the table to the fireplace. He looked at 
the kettles and at the knives and forks and 
saucers and plates, which he could see through the 
half-open cupboard door. 

He looked at his father’s gun which hung 
on the wall and at the geraniums which bloomed 
in the window. At last he caught sight of an 


old butterfly net that hung on the window frame. 
236 


the cottage had grown? Why was he obliged to 
take so many more steps than usual to get to 
the table? 

And. what was the matter with the chair? It 
looked no bigger than it always had, but now 
he had to step on the rung first and then climb 
up in order to reach the seat. It was the same 
with the table. He couldn’t look over the top 
of it without climbing to the arm of the chair. 

“What in the world does this mean?”’ asked 
the boy. ‘‘I believe the elf has bewitched the 
arm-chair and the table.”’ 

The Bible lay on the table, and there was 
something queer about that, too; for he could 
not read a single word without standing on the 
book itself. The boy read one or two lines and 
then chanced to look up. He glanced at the 
looking-glass and then cried aloud: 

“Look! There’s another one!’’ 

In the glass he saw a little creature who wore 
a hood and leather breeches. 

“Why, this one is dressed exactly like me!” 
said the boy, as he clasped his hands in astonish- 


ment. 
: 239 


But when he clasped his hands, the little man 
in the mirror did thesame thing, Heran around 
the mirror to see if there wasn’t a little man 
hiding behind it, but he found no one there. 

At last the boy began to shake with terror. 
Now he knew that the elf had bewitched him 
and that the little creature he saw in the mirror 
was himself. 

NILS BECOMES AN ELF 

The boy could not make himself believe that 
he had been changed into an elf. 

“It can’t be anything but a dream,’ thought 
he. “If I wait a few moments, I shall be turned 
back into a human being again.” 

He placed himself before the mirror and closed 
his eyes. He opened them again in a minute 
or two, and then expected to find that it had 
all passed over,—but it hadn’t. He remained 
just as little as ever. 

In other respects he was the same as before. 
The straw-colored hair, the freckles on his nose, 
the patches on his leather breeches and the darns 
on his stockings were just the same—but they 


were much smaller. 
240 


He was certain now that it would do him no 
good to wait. He must try something else. 
He thought the wisest thing he could do would 
be to try to find the elf and make his peace with 
him. 

While he was looking for the elf, the boy cried 
and prayed and promised everything he could 
think of. Never would he break his word to 
anyone. Never would he fall asleep again over 
the sermon. If he might be a human being 
once more, he would be a good and obedient 
boy. But no matter how much he promised, 
it did not help him the least little bit. 

Suddenly he remembered that he had heard 
his mother say that all the tiny folk made their 
home in the cowsheds. He decided to go there 
and see if he couldn’t find the elf. 

It was a lucky thing that the cottage door 
was partly open, for he could never have reached 
the bolt and opened it. Now he slipped through 
without any difficulty. 

On the board-walk in front of the cottage 
hopped a gray sparrow. He had hardly set 


eyes on the boy before he called out: 
16 yr © 2Al 


“Tee! Tee! Look at Nils Gooseboy! Look at 
Thumbytot! Look at Nils Thumbytot!”’ 

Then the geese and the chickens turned and 
stared at Nils; and they began to hiss and 
cackle. 

‘“‘ Cock-a-doodle-do!”’ said the rooster. “‘Good 
enough for him! He pulled my comb!” 

‘“Ka-ka-kada!”’ said the hens. ‘‘Served you 
right! Served you right!”’ 

The strangest thing of all was that Nils under- 
stood what they said. He was so astonished 
that he exclaimed: 

‘It must be because I am changed into an 
elf. That is probably why I understand bird- 
talk.’’ | 

He could not endure hearing the hens say it 
served him right, so he threw a stone at them 
and shouted, ‘‘Shut up, you pack!”’ 

But it hadn’t occurred to him before that he 
was no longer the kind of boy the hens need fear. 
The whole flock of hens made a rush for him and 
formed a ring around him. 

Nils tried to get away, but the chickens ran 


after him and screamed. It is more than likely 
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that he couldn’t have gotten away from them 
if the house cat hadn’t come along just then. 
As soon as the chickens saw the cat, they became 
quiet and pretended to be scratching in the 
earth for worms. 

Immediately Nils ran to the cat. ‘‘ You dear 
pussy,” said he, ‘‘ you must know all the corners 
and hiding places about here. Now be a good 
kitty and tell me where I can find the elf.” 

‘*T know well enough where the elf lives,” the 
cat said in a soft voice, ‘but that doesn’t mean 
that I shall tell you about it.” 

‘‘Dear pussy, you must tell me where the elf 
lives,” said the boy. ‘‘Can’t you see he has 
bewitched me?”’ 

The cat opened his green eyes a little and said, 
‘“‘Perhaps you expect me to help you because you 
have so often pulled my tail.’’ 

That made Nils angry. He forgot how little 
and helpless he was, and rushed toward the cat, 
saying: ‘Oh! I can pull your tail again, I can.” 

The next instant the cat was so changed that 
the boy hardly knew him. Every hair on his 


body stood on end. His tail had grown thick. 
244 


His eyes glistened like sparks of fire. 

Nils didn’t want to let himself be scared by 
a cat and he took a step forward. Then the cat 
made one spring and landed right on the boy and 
knocked him down. Her paws were on the boy’s 
chest and his jaws, over his throat. 

Nils shrieked for help, but no one came. He 
thought his last hour had come. But then the 
cat let go and said: 

‘There, that will do! I’lIl let you go this time 
for the sake of my mistress. I only wanted yor 
to know which one of us is the stronger.” 

Now Nils crawled up on the hedge and began 
to think how surprised his parents would be 
when they came home from church! It was too 
horrible to think about. He wished that no 
human being should ever see him again. 


THE WILD GEESE 
Several flocks of wild geese flew by. They 
flew very high, but he could hear them call: 
“To the hills! Now we’re off to the hills!” 
When the wild geese saw the tame geese at the 


farm, they sank nearer the earth and called: 
245, 


‘“Come along! Come along! We're off to the 
hills!”’ 

The tame geese raised their heads and listened. 
Then they answered: ‘‘We are pretty well off 
where we are! We are pretty well off where we 
are!”’ | 

More and more wild geese flew by and at last 
the tame geese became very restless. One young 
gander said: “If another flock comes this way, 
I'll fly away, too.” 

Soon another flock came and called like the 
others and a young gander answered: ‘‘ Wait a 
minute! Wait a minute! I’m coming!”’ | 

He spread his wings and raised himself into 
the air, but he was not used to flying and fell to 
the ground again. 

The wild geese must have heard him call, 
for they flew back to see if he was coming. 

“Wait! Wait!” he cried, as he made another 
attempt to fly. 

Nils heard all that was said and thought he 
ought to do something. 

“Tt would be a great pity,” thought he, ‘‘if 


the big goosey-gander should fly away. It would 
246 


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be a great loss to father and mother if he was 
gone when they came home from church.” 

He forgot how little and helpless he was and 
leaped down into the goose-flock. He threw 
his arms around the goosey-gander’s neck and 
said, ‘‘Oh, no; you can’t fly away this time!” 

The gander was just ready to raise himself 
from the ground. He couldn’t stop to shake 
off the boy, so he had to take him along with 
him. 

Before Nils had time to think he ought to 
let go of the gander’s neck, he was so high up 
that he would have been killed if he had let go. 
The only thing he could do was to climb up on 
the gander’s back. He held fast to the feathers 
to keep from tumbling to the ground. 

The geese flew onward all the rest of the day. 
The tame gander could hardly keep up with 
the others, but they only called to him: 

“Fly faster. Itis easier to fly fast than slowly!” 

At last the tame gander could fly no further 
and settled down on the shore of a lake where 
he could rest and drink some of the clear water. 


The other geese saw what the gander had done, 
248 | 


and they turned back to swim in the lake. 

The geese stayed at the lake for many days, 
but one night it was so cold the lake froze over. 
Until that time Nils had slept on the shore. 
Now he was able to go out on the ice and sleep 
with the geese. 

One night he was awakened by the geese who 
were Squawking and flapping their wings. He 
looked about him and saw a small long-legged 
dog running over the ice with a goose in his 
mouth. | 

Nils thought it was a dog, but it was Cunning 
Fox instead. He ran after the fox and called: 
“Drop that goose! Drop that goose!’’ 

Cunning Fox did not know who was calling 
him and ran as fast as he could. He ran straight 
for the forest, and the boy followed him. 

At last Nils caught up with the fox and seized 
hold of his tail. 

“Now I’ll take that goose away from you,”’ 
Nils cried; but he was not strong enough to 
stop the fox. The fox dragged Nils along until 
the dry leaves whirled around him; but at last 


he stopped to see what had hold of his tail. 
249 


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Cunning Fox put the goose on the ground, 
held it with his paw and looked back at Nils. 

“Now run away,” said he, “for I am going 
to bite off the goose’s head.’’ | 

Nils took a firm hold on the tail, braced 
against a tree and pulled as hard as he could. 
Cunning Fox was so surprised that his paw 
slipped off the goose and she flew away. 

Then the fox made a dash for the boy. ‘If 
I don’t get one, I shall have the other,” said he. 

‘Don’t you believe it,” said Nils, who was 
in high spirits because he had saved the goose. 

Then there was such a dance in that forest 
that the dry birch leaves fairly flew. Cunning 
Fox swung around and around, but the tail 
swung, too, and the boy kept a grip on it, so 
the fox couldn’t grab him. 

At last Nils caught sight of a young birch- 
tree that shot up as straight as a rod. Quick 
as a flash he let go of the tail and climbed the 
tree. Cunning Fox was so wild he danced around 
after his tail for a long time. 

Finally Nils called out, “Don’t try to dance 


any longer, Cunning Fox.” 
251 


When the fox saw he had heen fooled, he lay 
down under the tree to wait for the boy to come 
down. But the boy did not come down. 

Late in the morning a goose came flying near 
the birch-tree. She was flying low and Cunning 
Fox jumped and tried to catch her, but he 
missed her. 

It was not long before another goose came 
flying near the birch-tree. Cunning Fox tried 
to catch her, but she got away from him and 
flew to the lake. 

Then another goose came and another until 
the. whole flock had flown past. Suddenly Cun- 
ning Fox remembered his prisoner and looked 
toward the birch-tree. As might have been 


expected, Nils had escaped. 
—Selma Lagerlof. 


252 


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